Citizens' Advisory Committee
Power Subcommittee

MINUTES

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
1155 Market Street, 4th Floor Conference Room
San Francisco, CA

Members
Kimia Mizany – Chair
Nick Carlin
Aaron Israel
Steve Lawrence
Winchell Hayward

Members present: Kimia Mizany (Chair), Nick Carlin, Steve Lawrence

Members not present: Aaron Israel, Winchell Hayward

Staff: Jim Marks

Members of the Public: none

ORDER OF BUSINESS

Roll Call
 
1. Call to Order
Kimia Mizany, Chair, called the meeting to order at 5:45 pm.
 
2. Approval of Minutes
Minutes of meeting of January 10, 2008 was adopted unanimously without revision.

3. Announcements
Next regularly scheduled meeting will be March 4th; there will be an update on the Climate Action Plan. April meeting: subcommittee will hear from John O’Donnell of Ausra, INC., a company which develops utility-scale solar thermal power.

4. Public Comment
No public comment.

5. Presentations and Discussion:
Karen Kubick, Manager of the Power Enterprises’ Infrastructure
Division, and John Doyle, Manager of Renewable Energy Project Development, presented an update on the Power Enterprise’s renewable energy projects. 

Ms. Kubick explained that the Mayor’s Energy Conservation Account (MECA) is funded by excess revenues from Hetch Hetchy Water & Power hydropower revenues, which are not predictable. To address this problem, Power is planning to enter into a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) to install about 5.3 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaic panels at Sunset Reservoir and Pier 96.  This will reduce the capital cost for the SFPUC significantly, while the design, build, own, operate and transfer contracts to construct these facilities would permit these facilities to revert to the City’s ownership at the end of the contract.  Ms. Kubick pointed out that the PPA approach could work well for CCA, too.

Ms. Kubick described additional planned solar installations for FY 2008-09, including a possible large-scale (7MW) at the SFPUC’s Tesla Portal property, seven miles south of Tracy.  Ms. Kubick also described the projects being undertaken by the Energy Efficiency Group for both SFPUC divisions and other City departments.  These include energy audits, planning and implementation of lighting replacement and heating, ventilation and air condition (HVAC) upgrades, and design review of new construction.

In response to Mr. Carlin’s question about SF’s peak load, Mr. Doyle pointed out that it is about 940 MW and the municipal part of that is 140 MW.  Mr. Doyle noted that five solar photovoltaic (PV) projects were completed this year:  Pier 96 (Phase I), Northpoint, CDD warehouse, Maxine Hall Neighborhood Health Center and the Chinatown Library.  With these projects completed, the Power Enterprise has about two MW currently installed. By the end of FY ’08-’09, that figure should jump to more than 7 MW.

Mr. Doyle described other renewable energy initiatives currently under way.  These include the sitting of solar energy facilities, possibly a solar thermal facility, in the Sunol Valley; the installation of solar thermal panels at Sava Pool for water heating; the completion of a tidal power study, which shows that this approach could yield only 1-to-1.5 MW; a study of a possible wave energy installation within the Oceanside Plant’s offshore right-of-way, about 9 miles out; a grant to assess geothermal power opportunities.

6. The meeting adjourned at 7:00 PM.