Redondo power plant run rate low again

The CEC just released the total 2013 run rate for the AES Redondo power plant.  In 2013, the Redondo plant produced just 2.58% of its annual capacity.  And that was with San Onfre Nuclear Generation Station offline all year.  The run rate is lower than in 2011 and 2012.  In fact, since 2005, the plant has averaged a 3.78% annual run rate.  We ratepayers have been funding AES to maintain a plant that is 96% unused.

These low run rates clearly demonstrate that we can permanently retire the Redondo plant without any negative impact to local grid reliability. 

A recent CPUC decision on how much power is needed to replace the San Onofre power plant corroborates this conclusion.  Earlier this month the CPUC published a draft decision that it would only allow a maximum of 1,500MW of new long term natural gas power contracts in our part of the grid.  This is bad for AES.  AES has applied to replace all three of its current ocean cooled power plants with a total of 3,300 MW of power capacity.  The CPUC decision means that, at best, if it wins all the competitive bids to supply power for the future, AES could only get a contract for 45% of their applied for capacity.  And their Huntington and Alamitos plants would be more efficient at answering the projected power needs in the absence of San Onofre.  

As more nails are driven into the coffin of the AES Redondo plant, it is time our city look at an integrated vision for our waterfront.  The City is in the process of trying to shoehorn 15 pounds of mall development into our 5 pound harbor.  That solution is bookended by two three story massive parking lots to house the 20,000 weekday car trips required to make the shopping center successful.  If the City takes a step back, and considers the opportunity presented on the AES property, I am sure we can come up with a solution that avoids overdevelopment of our harbor while generating sufficient investment and development across the combined sites to revitalize the waterfront.