Plant Is Near Full Activity

Longview Power in testing stage

Morgantown Dominion Post
3 September 2011
By Alex Lang

Longview Power is now weeks from being fully operational, according to one of its officials.

General Manager Charlie Huguenard said in the next few weeks the plant should be performing normal operations. The plant is still in its commissioning phase though it is generating electricity, he said.

There has been slight delay in getting the plant fully functional, Huguenard said. The delay occurred because the staff fixed problems that came up as they readied the plant for normal operations. He compared it to building a house — sometimes a contractor might have to go back in to fix a problem.

The hiring “for the most part” is complete, Huguenard said. There are 90 people on the operation staff and handful of other employees.

Officials are testing and fine-tuning the plant’s 273 control systems to make sure they meet performance standards, according to previous reports by The Dominion Post.

Among those standards are the lowest permitted air-emission limits for a pulverized coal plant to date, imposed by the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Jim Kotcon, with the West Virginia Sierra Club, said the organization still thinks the plant is a bad idea for a variety of reasons.

“We’re still concerned with the fly ash disposal,” he said.

They also have concerns over air quality and potential water pollution issues stemming from the plant, Kotcon said.

But he said they realize the permit meets all the legal requirements. He said the Sierra Club was looking forward to reviewing future emission reports.

Hurricane Irene did not affect the plant, but workers did feel the recent earthquake, Huguenard said.

If a natural disaster does affect another plant in the area, Huguenard said Longview might have to maintain a full load to help meet demands on its grid.

Plants usually generate at between 50 percent and 100 percent capacity depending on demand.

But the more likely scenario is the plant would have to decrease its load because demand would be down due to an increase in individuals without power, Huguenard said.