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Scattergood Generating Station

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Power station in Los Angeles
Scattergood Generating Station
View of Scattergood steam plant from Marvin Braude Bike Path
CountryLos Angeles
LocationLos Angeles, California
Coordinates33°55′07″N 118°25′40″W / 33.91861°N 118.42778°W / 33.91861; -118.42778
StatusActive, refit planned
Construction began1957
Commission date7 December 1958
OwnerLos Angeles Department of Water and Power
OperatorLos Angeles Department of Water and Power
Power generation
Units operational2 x 197 MW, 1 x 445 MW
Nameplate capacity830 MW
Capacity factor23.9% (2005)
Annual net output118,402 MWh
[edit on Wikidata]

Scattergood Generating Station is an electricity-generating facility in the Playa Del Rey area of Los Angeles, California, in proximity to El Segundo and LAX. Scattergood has an 830 MW capacity spread across three steam turbine units. Owned and operated by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the station is a coastal landmark of the Santa Monica Bay in southern California. Plans are in place to convert the station to hydrogen power.

One writer described Scattergood and similar plants as “steel T. Rexes” hovering over southern California’s “finest beaches.” Another local journalist wrote that the presence of the “large, noisy” generating station discouraged tourism at adjacent beaches.

Construction on the 56-acre (230,000 m) site began in the late 1950s. The power plant, which cost $65 million, was named for Ezra F. Scattergood, first chief electric engineer of the Los Angeles municipal power system. Units 1 and 2 were brought online in 1958 and 1959, respectively; Unit 3 came online in 1974 with a potential 460 MW output.

Circa 1964, the entire plant could be operated with as few as six staffers. As of 1971, Unit 3 was projected to cost an additional $68 million but provide power for 10 percent of the city. Between 2013 and 2015, the Department of Water and Power replaced the original Unit 3 “with a highly efficient combined cycle (natural gas and steam) turbine and two simple-cycle turbines.”

The plant is currently powered by gas supplied by Southern California Gas. Waste gas from the neighboring Hyperion sewage treatment plant was used during the 1960s. The plant cycles through 500,000,000 U.S. gal (1.9×10 L) of seawater daily as coolant. The seawater cools the freshwater that is turned to steam and back again; the steam turns the turbines that generate the electricity. The seawater is released back into the ocean 20 °F (−7 °C) cooler than when it was removed.

The plant’s electricity production was considered “extremely stable” circa 1977. Output is transmitted through an intertie line.

Conversion to Hydrogen Power

In February 2023, the LA city council unanimously approved an $800 million plan to convert the plant from natural gas to hydrogen. The refitted plant will provide base load during periods of high demand or emergencies as part of city plans to run on 100% renewable energy by 2035.

Public safety

In 1996, a scuba diver said to be looking for lobsters at night was sucked into the intake pipe of the plant. He was not harmed due to steel bars between the basin and pumps.

References

  1. ^ "LADWP Begins Rebuilding Scattergood Power Plant to Eliminate Ocean Water Cooling, Reduce Emissions and Improve Reliability Project Marks Continued Progress Towards Clean Energy Future for Los Angeles". www.ladwpnews.com. Retrieved 2022-11-12.
  2. ^ "Scattergood retrofitting plan" (PDF).
  3. Jones, Robert A. "Giving Power (Plants) to the People." Los Angeles Times, Jul 06, 1997, pp. 2.
  4. Goldman, Jay. "Postscript." Los Angeles Times, Sep 20, 1988, pp. 1.
  5. "Scattergood Generating Station Repowering – Sequoia". Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  6. "$65 Million Scattergood Steam Plant Dedicated." Los Angeles Times, Sep 11, 1959, pp. 1.
  7. Gnerre, Sam (2016-05-14). "Meet the man from whom the Scattergood Generating Station takes its name | South Bay History". blogs.dailybreeze.com. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  8. ^ BASTAJIAN, Lee, "Beach Plant Quenches Area's Electrical Thirst: Conversion of Water to Steam to Power is Never-Ending Task at L.A. City Facility." Los Angeles Times, Oct 11, 1964, pp. 2.
  9. Dreyfuss, John. "ANTI-POLLUTION DRIVE VICTORY: SMOG BOARD OKS BUILDING SCATTERGOOD 3 POWER PLANT." Los Angeles Times, Feb 19, 1971, pp. 2-a1.
  10. "Power plant profile: Scattergood Steam Turbine Power Plant, US". Power Technology. 2023-04-23. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  11. "State should miss power outages in summer of 1978". Santa Cruz Sentinel. 1977-11-09. p. 18.
  12. Wells, Caleigh (2023-04-12). "LA's controversial plan to switch a gas plant to hydrogen". KCRW. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  13. Chou, Elizabeth (2022-09-19). "Plan to shift Scattergood power station to hydrogen is delayed by LA City Council committee". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  14. "San Bernardino Sun 20 October 1996 — California Digital Newspaper Collection". cdnc.ucr.edu. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
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