Fired

Year 2000 could be the year of the fuel cell on Wall Street asnext year is expected to see first commercialization of thetechnology on Main Street. While most consumers have yet to hear ofthe big gas-powered backyard batteries, investors certainly areaware.

Aquila Energy sold to San Jose-based Calpine Corp. a 50%interest in its 600 MW gas-fired, combined-cycle Aries power plantnow under construction in Pleasant Hill, MO. Under the agreementMerchant Energy Partners, an Aquila subsidiary, will manage thefuel supply for the plant as well as all the power produced by theplant. Calpine will oversee construction, operation andmaintenance.

Plug Power Inc.’s first demonstration using a gas-fired fuelcell to power a home was declared a success by the company. Thehome in Latham, NY, was converted to gas from pure hydrogen inAugust without a glitch. The house is equipped with Plug Power’sfuel cell stack, a power conditioner and gas fuel processor.”Powering a house with electricity from a natural gas fuel cellsystem is an important first for Plug Power and for the fuel cellindustry,” said Gary Mittleman, Plug Power’s CEO. Plug Power plansto make its fuel cell systems available beginning in 2001 through ajoint venture with GE MicroGen, a subsidiary of GE Power Systems.The typical 7-10 kW units are expected to cost $3,000-$5,000 by2003. They will have a 17-year life span. The Plug Power systemreceives fuel from a home’s existing gas line or propane tank,converts the fuel into a hydrogen-rich stream and then combines itwith oxygen from the air in a chemical reaction that produceselectric power.

Although there are still proposals crowding the queue for newnatural gas-fired merchant power plants in California, the statehas lost a lot of its luster because of time-consuming sitingapprovals, environmental set-asides and a flawed pricing systemthrough the state power exchange (PX), according to a panel ofregulators and power plant developers.

Although there are still proposals crowding the queue for newnatural gas-fired merchant power plants in California, the statehas lost a lot of its luster because of time-consuming sitingapprovals, environmental set-asides and a flawed pricing systemthrough the state power exchange (PX), according to a panel ofregulators and power plant developers.

Sunoco Inc. and FPL Group’s FPL Energy announced an agreementyesterday to build a 725 MW gas-fired combined cycle power plant atSunoco’s refinery in Marcus Hook, PA. The two companies said theyintend to gain all necessary approvals by the third quarter andstart construction in late 2000. While the refinery will consumethe plant’s steam, all the generation will be sold into thePennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland (PJM) market.

Calpine Corp. announced it has bought the development rights tobuild, own and operate a 500 MW natural gas-fired cogen facility inPittsburg, CA, from Enron Corp. The Los Medanos Energy Center(formerly called the Pittsburg District Energy Facility) recentlywas licensed by the California Energy Commission after acomprehensive year-long environmental and technical review.Construction of the $350 million facility is underway.

Most cash points rose 1 to 5 cents yesterday on the strength ofa futures rally fired by a bullish American Gas Association storagereport. Traders were in agreement that prices were flat toWednesday until the futures screen picked up in the late morning.

Dynegy has announced plans to construct a 155 MW naturalgas-fired power generation facility, the Calcasieu GenerationProject, near Lake Charles, LA. Power generated at thesimple-cycle peaking facility will be sold in the wholesale powermarket starting in the second quarter of 2000.The plant will belocated on the site of a recently constructed natural gas liquidsfractionation facility operated by subsidiary Dynegy MidstreamServices Ltd. Partnership. The power will enter the grid through a230 kilovolt Entergy Services transmission line interconnect.