MID Board Report Archive

MID Board Meeting of Tues., Oct. 17, 2006
Contact: MID Public Affairs Department, Maree Hawkins, 209 526-7390
The next MID Board meetings are scheduled for Nov. 7, 14, and 28.
(Please note:  The Nov. 14 meeting will be held at 7 p.m. and includes a public hearing on the proposed rate increase.)

Water report

Assistant General Manager Walter Ward, Water Operations, said November 3 is still targeted as the end of irrigation season. The fall salmon migration to the Tuolumne River spawning beds near La Grange has started. The migration should peak about the second week in November.

Woodland Generation Unit 2 Spline Repair and Engine Lease

The Board approved (3-0 with one abstention) leasing an LM6000 engine from General Electric (GE) through the GE Lease Engine Program and repair of Woodland Generation Unit 2. Generation Manager Greg Salyer reported that Unit 2 recently suffered a failure of the high pressure section spline piece, a precision metal fitting used to interconnect the compressor rotor to the gear box. The engine will be sent to Houston for repair, with repair time estimated at five weeks. The failure occurred just weeks before the plant was being taken out of service for its 25,000-hour scheduled service.

The temporary replacement engine will enable Unit 2 to provide electricity so staff can continue with major maintenance on Woodland 1, Don Pedro, and various water-related facilities. All power plants need to be ready for MID’s next peak season.

Assistant General Manager Roger VanHoy said the leasing program is an insurance policy.  He noted there are limited options:  Keep the power plant fleet working or go to rolling blackouts.  Looking forward, he said MID needs to be ready for the 2007, 2008, and 2009 peaks.  “I can’t get power in, so I can’t offer you that option,” he added.  He predicted very tight situations in the next three summers.

Safety Program

The Board unanimously approved a $72,000 budget augmentation for the Safety Incentive Program.  The augmentation allows employees to redeem safety points through the end of the year.  This is the last year of a four-year program.  Safety Officer Jahna Colby said the program has paid off in incident-free years for these departments: Line Construction, 2005; Substation, 2004 and 2005; and Trouble, 2003, 2004, 2005. She felt this was remarkable considering the type of work those departments perform.

New Automated External Defibrillators

The Board unanimously approved a budget augmentation of $11,000 to update District-owned Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs). The American Heart Association made changes to the Guidelines for CPR and Emergency Cardiovascular Care, including the number of shocks the AED will deliver. 

Budget workshop

The Board continued its budget workshop with presentation of preliminary operations and maintenance budgets for the Board of Directors, Board Secretary, General Manager, Public Affairs, Human Resources, Planning and Marketing, IT, Customer Services, Finance, and Electric Resources. 

The Board will continue reviewing the budget over the next several meetings.On November 7 the proposed rate increase will be introduced. A public hearing will be held at the November 14 meeting (7 p.m.). The Board will consider adoption of a rate package at its November 28 meeting.