Construction of the Oak Creek expansion project began on June 29, 2005. Currently, there are approximately 2,200 people working on-site and overall project construction progress is approximately 91 percent complete.

• Unit 1 & 2 Power Block Activities
  Unit 1: Foundation work on the Unit 1 boiler building began in January 2006. Steel erection for Unit 1 began in May 2006 and reached its full height of 280 feet in March 2007. It is anticipated that the project will utilize more than 28,000 tons of structural steel to construct the needed facilities. The first boiler section was set in place on May 3, 2007, boiler hydro was completed on Oct. 25, 2008, and chemical cleaning of the boiler was completed on May 25, 2009. The Unit 1 generator stator (last large piece of the steam turbine generator set) was set in place on May 11, 2007. Work on Unit 1 currently consists of installing the remaining electrical and mechanical equipment, flushing/cleaning mechanically completed systems, and system startup activities. First fire on natural gas was achieved on July 23, 2009, and steam blows were completed on Aug. 22, 2009.
  
  On Oct. 1, 2009, the turbine was rolled up to its full operating speed of 3,600 revolutions per minute. On Oct. 3, the unit was successfully fired on coal for the first time. The unit was synchronized with the grid on Oct. 6 and generated its first power for export to customers on Oct. 7. As of Nov. 3, Bechtel had been tuning and testing the unit up to 200 megawatts (MW) and is preparing to increase the load to more than 300 MW. Bechtel will continue to increase the unit load up to its full design capacity of 615 MW and expects to commence various performance tests during December. These tests will, among other things, demonstrate the unit’s guaranteed efficiency rate, capacity, reliability and ability to comply with the various environmental emission limits.

Bechtel Power Corp. continues to target completion of Unit 1 and the common systems by the end of December 2009.

Unit 2: Foundation work for the Unit 2 boiler building began in May 2006. Structural steel erection of the Unit 2 boiler building began in March 2007 and reached its full height of 280 feet in September 2007. The Unit 2 boiler erection began on May 6, 2008, with the hanging of the furnace frontwall. The Unit 2 generator stator was set in place on July 17, 2008.

The second unit under construction is now approximately 74 percent complete. The Unit 2 boiler successfully passed its pressure test and Bechtel’s near-term goals are to complete the remaining piping and exhaust gas path through the air quality control equipment. Unit 2 construction will transition to startup and commissioning towards the end of this year and early in 2010.

Plant emissions will be controlled by an air quality control system (AQCS) consisting of a selective catalytic reducer (SCR), a baghouse, a flue gas desulfurization unit (FGD), and a wet electrostatic precipitator (WESP). The Unit 1 structures and internals are in place with work continuing with the startup of the systems. The main structures for Unit 2 are approximately 90 percent complete, with work continuing on the installation of the remaining structures and internal mechanical & electrical equipment/components.

• Chimney
  The units will utilize a common chimney that is 550 feet tall and 70 feet in diameter. Chimney foundation work began in May 2006 and by October 2006 the concrete outer shell work was ready to begin. To construct the shell, a slip-form was used and concrete was poured continuously 24 hours a day for 41 days. The shell was completed in December 2006. Inside the chimney there are two 25 feet diameter fiber glass flues, one serving each unit. These flues were constructed on-site. The first section was installed within the concrete shell in September 2007, and both flues were completed in October 2008.
  
  
• Water intake system
  Offshore work during 2005 and 2006 focused on the construction of four 12-feet diameter down shafts located approximately 1.5 miles offshore and a 27 feet diameter intake tunnel (bored 200’ below the bed of Lake Michigan) that connected the down shafts to the old and new power plant circulating water facilities. In February 2007, boring of the 9,250 feet tunnel was completed. Installation of 24 intake screens on the down shafts offshore were completed in September 2007. The portion of the intake system that supports the existing power plant was placed in service on Jan. 17, 2009. The remaining portion of the intake system that goes to the new power plant was placed in operation on June 12, 2009.
  
  
• Coal Handling System
  The coal handling system (which is designed to supply coal to both the existing OCPP and the new power plant) is now in operation. The system includes 17 miles of new rail road track, a rotary car dumper, four transfer towers, a crusher tower, two outdoor coal piles, a stacker/reclaimer system inside a coal storage building, and approximately 2½ miles of conveyors.
  
  
• Construction of limestone and gypsum handling systems
  The wet flue gas desulphurization (FGD) system will use limestone as its reagent and produces wallboard quality gypsum as a byproduct. Construction on the limestone/gypsum handling facilities began in April 2007 with an expected completion prior to Unit 1 operation in 2009. The system includes a barge unloader/loader, limestone storage pile, reagent preparation building, gypsum dewatering building, gypsum storage building, gypsum storage pile, and a conveyor system that connects all of the facilities. (The facilities are all being built on the former coal dock).
  
  
• Rail expansion
  The Union Pacific Railroad has expanded the rail tracks along the existing rail corridor from 5 Mile Road north to the power plant site. This work was completed in August 2007.
  
  
• Construction of 6 Mile Road underpass
  A vehicular underpass was built at the rail crossing at Six Mile Road in Caledonia to alleviate traffic delays that may have resulted from coal trains entering or leaving the Oak Creek Expansion site. The underpass went into service in September 2006.

Updated 11/09