Major Amendment Proceeding
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December 14, 2011
Energy Commission
Business Meeting
Possible approval of a petition to amend the Energy Commission decision to extend the deadline for the start of construction of the Black Rock 1, 2, and 3.
(Item 5 on the
business meeting agenda)
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Black Rock 1, 2, and 3 Geothermal Power Project
Major Amendment
(Formerly Salton Sea Unit 6 Geothermal Power Plant)
Docket Number:
02-AFC-2C
(Compliance Proceeding on Orginal Application For Certification)
Committee Overseeing This Case:
Please note: the official name of this project has been changed from the "Salton Sea Geothermal Unit 6 Power Project" to "Black Rock 1, 2, and 3 Geothermal Power Project" to more closely describe the proposed design of the project, as detailed in the applicant's Petition to Amend the Commission's license for the project.
Key Dates
- March 13, 2009 - Petition for Major Amendment filed with the California Energy Commission
- December 17, 2003 - Energy Commission grants original license to Salton Sea Geothermal Project
General Description of Project
CE Obsidian Energy, LLC (Applicant) currently possesses a license to construct a geothermal generating plant on an 80-acre site in Imperial County, California. The project was designated as Salton Sea Unit 6 (docket # 02-AFC-2) and was originally granted a license by the California Energy Commission in December 2003 for a 185 MW plant. The original 2003 license was amended in May 2005 to enable the plant to increase its capacity to 215 MW. The Applicant petitioned, and the California Energy Commission subsequently granted, an extension to the Salton Sea Unit 6 license, making it effective until December 18, 2011.
The Applicant is now proposing to amend its license to allow for the construction of three smaller geothermal plants totaling 159 MW net of generating capacity. Both the 185 MW and 215 MW projects proposed using multiple flash geothermal power generating technology, while the Amended Project proposes single flash technology, which requires less facility infrastructure, and produces less waste compared to multiple flash technology.
The three units will be colocated on the same site as the original SSU6 project and will share various common auxiliary facilities. The site is currently used for agriculture. Land uses in the surrounding area include existing geothermal power facilities, agriculture, and the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. The original project site was comprised of an 80-acre site bounded on the north by McKendry Road, on the east by Boyle Road, on the west by Severe Road, and on the south by Peterson Road. The Amended Project includes the original 80-acre site plus an additional 80 acres adjacent to the south, part of which was used for construction support in the original project. The three power plants will be situated generally in the middle of the site with production well pads on the northern, western, and southern perimeters of the site.
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