[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 77 (Friday, June 17, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 17, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                         ANOTHER ENERGY SOURCE

                                 ______


                       HON. ROBERT G. TORRICELLI

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 17, 1994

  Mr. TORRICELLI. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
inform my colleagues of the unique energy source Mount Hope Hydro, 
Inc., can provide to help avoid the rolling blackouts endured 
throughout the Northeast last winter. Mt. Hope is developing an 
advanced pumped storage waterpower project located in northwestern New 
Jersey which will provide an alternative, reliable, and safe power 
supply across the Northeast.
  Mr. Frank Fisher, president of Mt. Hope, recently testified before 
the House Energy and Power Subcommittee and revealed the important 
contribution advanced pumped storage waterpower can make to our 
Nation's energy supply. I am providing a copy of Mr. Fisher's testimony 
for my colleagues to review.

 Testimony of Frank S. Fisher, President, Mt. Hope Hydro, Inc., Before 
 The Subcommittee on Energy and Power, House of Representatives, March 
                                17, 1994

       Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: My name is 
     Frank Fisher, and I am president of Mount Hope Hydro, 
     Incorporated, which is developing a large, advanced pumped 
     storage waterpower project in northwestern New Jersey, 35 
     miles due west of New York City. Thank you for the 
     opportunity to testify this morning on measures which should 
     be taken to avoid future electric service interruptions such 
     as those which occurred on the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-
     Maryland (``PJM'') Interconnection this past January.
       As other witnesses before the Subcommittee have testified, 
     the rolling blackouts of January 19 revealed some 
     shortcomings within the PJM system. It is difficult for me to 
     be precise about the exact causes of the blackouts because we 
     have not had access to all of the pertinent information. 
     However, one factor was that massive demand for natural gas 
     caused a deficiency in pipeline supply. Simply put, there was 
     not enough to go around. Next, the system is dependent on 
     technologies which are not weather resistent, and as a 
     result, power plants could not operate to full capacity under 
     the extreme cold. Also, PJM typically does not consider the 
     winter months a period of peak demand, so a significant 
     proportion of capacity was out of service for planned 
     maintenance and repair work.
       Clearly, the region--and the nation as a whole--needs a 
     low-cost insurance policy against future blackouts and 
     brownouts. Diversity of power sources is key to preventing 
     peak demand power shortages in the future. The recurrent 
     theme in recent press releases and comments about the 
     crisis--that such events are so rare and unpredictable that 
     it would not be cost-effective to guard against them--ignores 
     the potential benefits of new technology.
       Instead of taking recent events as a warning, power 
     companies are likely to continue to be pushed by regulatory 
     uncertainties and increasing commercial pressure to take a 
     short-term view. Indeed, they risk being penalized for not 
     doing so. Many PJM utilities are moving toward natural gas 
     projects as the solution to future demand, despite the fact 
     that the 1991 New Jersey Energy Master Plan, for one, warned 
     about the danger of excessive reliance on a single resource. 
     Depending on natural gas as the only new source of reliable, 
     clean power could set the region on a long-term course for 
     economic disaster.
       Alternatives are available to provide reliable, safe power 
     on a nearly instantaneous basis. What's more, as Clean Air 
     Act standards tighten in the highly-industrialized Northeast 
     region, it is in everyone's interest to look for new power 
     sources which do not create the local pollution emissions 
     associated with gas burning utility plants.
       For example, the Mount Hope Project currently under 
     development will, when completed in 2002, operate at a 
     capacity of 2000 megawatts * * * enough to protect more than 
     half a million homes from blackouts or brownouts during peak 
     demand periods. Had Mount Hope been on line in January, it 
     would have provided the low-cost peaking power and 
     transmission stability to prevent the blackouts, serving as 
     PJM's ``energy insurance policy.''
       Fundamentally, Mount Hope's pumped storage technology works 
     on the simple principle of gravity. A 1.6 billion gallon 
     above-ground reservoir will be connected by a shaft to an 
     underground powerhouse and water storage caverns which serve 
     as a lower reservoir. Water will circulate back and forth 
     between the reservoirs in a ``closed cycle,'' and during peak 
     electrical demand periods or simply on demand, water will be 
     released from the upper reservoir into the vertical shaft to 
     the powerhouse, 2,800 feet underground.
       Once in the powerhouse, the water will pass through six 
     fast response turbines which can reach full generating 
     capacity in less than 15 seconds. The power is brought to the 
     surface by cables in another shaft, and is ultimately 
     connected to existing transmission lines.
       After traveling through the turbines, the water is stored 
     in the underground lower reservoir. During off-peak hours, 
     the turbines will be reversed to pump the water back to the 
     upper reservoir, at which point the process can start again. 
     This entire process can be repeated up to 20 times a day to 
     meet demand and to optimize the use of other regional 
     generating facilities. It is impervious to weather since 
     underground temperatures remain at a constant 56 degrees 
     Fahrenheit.
       Mount Hope is patterned on the Dinorwig Pumped Storage 
     project operated in Wales by the British National Grid 
     Company. Dinorwig is one of the world's most technologically 
     advanced pumped storage facilities and uses a fast-response 
     technology which can produce at full output from standstill 
     in less than a minute. This technology significantly enhances 
     the capacity and reliability of the British transmission 
     system, far beyond the capabilities of the earlier, less-
     sophisticated pumped storage facilities on the PJM grid. 
     Indeed, the lack of advanced pumped storage facilities makes 
     the U.S. unique among the industrialized nations.
       Because of its location and ultra-fast response 
     capabilities, Mount Hope also offers the benefits of 
     increasing the capacity of the existing regional high-voltage 
     transmission system. It will provide a competitive advantage 
     in its ability to enhance the effective import capability of 
     the transmission system. Mount Hope's ability to permit the 
     PJM utilities to take advantage of remotely located power 
     sources beyond their boundaries will provide significantly 
     increased reliability. Potentially, billions of dollars could 
     be saved through enhancing the ability of the PJM utilities 
     to import less expensive energy from such sources.
       As attractive as the Mount Hope Project sounds, we have 
     found it difficult to make progress in our discussions with 
     utilities in the PJM grid. These difficulties are threefold. 
     First, because of the increasingly competitive nature of 
     their marketplace, the utilities are increasingly compelled 
     to focus on short-term requirements without proper regard for 
     the long term. While natural gas may offer a short-term 
     ``fix'' during the '90's, this situation is unlikely to last 
     long into the next decade. A prudent long-term view must 
     contemplate a mix of resources, and on such a view, a project 
     like Mount Hope doubly merits consideration. Not only does it 
     offer an alternative source of energy in itself, but it can 
     enhance the efficiency of other sources of generation and 
     improve both the capacity and the stability of the regional 
     transmission system.
       The second problem is that non-utility power project 
     developers are often left in the dark to assess the benefits 
     of new technology to potential utility customers. Most 
     utilities hold data relating to their needs as proprietary 
     information, so developers of alternative projects are left 
     to estimate or assume the degree of their projects' potential 
     benefits to the utilities. As a result, the true benefits of 
     projects based on new technology, like Mount Hope, may never 
     be fully measured.
       While we at Mount Hope understand there may be 
     justification for a degree of confidentiality surrounding 
     utility data, the future energy needs of the Northeast are 
     far too important to allow this to be an obstacle to 
     progress. We must work cooperatively toward our common goal 
     of providing a reliable, cost-effective source of electricity 
     to the consumer and not let the window of opportunity offered 
     by Mount Hope pass by the region. Under its FERC license, the 
     Mount Hope Project must start construction by August 1996 and 
     it is important that we secure commitments as soon as 
     possible.

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