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Ground was broken last week for a $275 million, 540 MW naturalgas-fired power plant in Arizona by San Jose, CA-based CalpineCorp., and close observers of the California electric restructuringare indicating this may be the start of more to come throughout theSouthwest.

Superior Court Judge Jose Lopez has signed off on a “letterrogatory” that sets in motion the process for attorneys for theNatural Gas Supply Association (NGSA) to depose the former CanadianEmbassy aide who has been accused along with the group’s formerpresident, Nicholas Bush, of defrauding the association of millionsof dollars.

Calpine Corp., a San Jose-based independent power company,announced plans to build, own and operate a 540-megawatt gas-firedpower plant in Westbrook, ME. Calpine acquired development rightsfor the Westbrook Power Plant from Genesis Power Corp. of Needham,MA. Construction of the $300 million facility is scheduled to beginlater this month. The plant, which will burn about 90 MMcf/d, isscheduled to begin power deliveries as early as November 2000 andwill serve the New England market. Westbrook is Calpine’s fourthcombined-cycle facility under development in the New Englandmarket.

Calpine Corp. of San Jose, CA, and North Dartmouth-MA basedEnergy Management Inc. formed a new power marketing joint venture,Calpine/EMI Marketing, LLC, which will sell power and transmissioncapacity in New England from new generation facilities in theregion.

Calpine Corp. has raised $265 million to complete constructionof a 510 MW expansion of its Pasadena, TX, power plant. Calpine,based in San Jose, CA, and the largest independent power producerin Texas, broke ground on the Pasadena plant expansion in November.The company expects to begin electricity production in June 2000 tohelp meet peak summer demand. The Pasadena plant currentlygenerates up to 240 MW of capacity. With the expansion, it willgenerate enough electricity to power 750,000 households.

San Jose-based independent power company Calpine Corp. acquireda 20% interest in 82 Bcf of proven gas reserves in NorthernCalifornia’s Sacramento basin. Calpine’s $15 million investmentprovided a portion of the financing for Houston-based SheridanEnergy Inc.’s acquisition of Sacramento Basin oil and gasproperties from Amerada Hess Corp.