03-21-14 BPU RPT 10 - Laserfiche WebLink

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BOARD OF PUBLIC UTILITIES SUBJECT: HARVEY LYNN REPLACEMENT APPROPRIATION ISSUE: DATE: March 21, 2014 ITEM NO: 10 SUBSTATION POWER TRANSFORMER AND SWITCH GEAR — WORK ORDER NO. 1418023 — SUPPLEMENTAL The issue for Board of Public Utilities consideration is approval of a capital expenditure in the amount of $2,700,000 for the equipment replacement and repair cost resulting from the unforeseen electrical failure at Harvey Lynn Substation. RECOMMENDATIONS: That the Board of Public Utilities: Approve the estimated capital expenditure of $2,700,000 for Work Order No. 1418023 for engineering, equipment procurement, construction, testing and contingencies for the equipment replacement and repair of Harvey Lynn Substation; and 2. Recommend that the City Council approve a supplemental appropriation in the amount of $2,700,000 from the Electric Fund Balance to the Substation Equipment Replacement Account No. 6130000- 470625. BACKGROUND: On March 1, 2014, around 2:30 a.m., in the midst of a Pacific storm and reports of lightning in the area, the Riverside Public Utilities (RPU) electrical system experienced an outage on three sub transmission lines and a severe fire at the Harvey Lynn Substation on Schuyler Street in the La Sierra neighborhood.. These events caused power interruption for more than 21,000 customers, including Kaiser Hospital. RPU staff performed switching to restore power to Kaiser Hospital by 4:25 a.m., and additional switching of the distribution circuits to restored power to all customers by 7:35 a.m. An investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the disturbance and the fire. As a result of the fire damage, the Harvey Lynn No. 3 transformer and switch gear, 69 kV breaker No. 6 and one 69 kV buss disconnect switch were destroyed. The damage also rendered the Harvey Lynn - Freeman 69 kV sub transmission line inoperable, pending repairs. Engineering staff are developing detailed plans for both temporary and permanent repairs. The preliminary estimated cost of the temporary and permanent repairs including all costs for equipment, materials, engineering, construction, overhead and contingencies is $2,700,000. Given the complex engineering required and long lead times to order this specialized equipment, the repairs will require approximately one year to complete.