The Nebraska Public Power District held its February 12-13, 2009, Board of Directors’ meeting in Columbus, Neb. The next Board of Directors’ meeting will be held Thursday and Friday, March 12-13, 2009, in Columbus.

Guests at the meeting included John Schmid and Gary Westphal with Butler Public Power District; Bruce Pontow of the Nebraska Electric G&T; NPPD retirees Arlene Engel and Janet Vetick; Dave Watts of Watts Electric; and Adrian Sanchez with the Columbus Telegram.

The Board approved the following capital projects for Cooper Nuclear Station: a supplement to the independent spent fuel storage installation project for $11,000,000; on-line noble chemistry injection skid project for $3,002,303; and emergency operations facility and Sheridan training facility communications upgrade for $150,000. 

The following contracts and engineer’s certificates were approved:

• Contract for reactor feed pump turbine “B” overhaul with Siemens Demag Delaval Turbomachinery, Inc., for $3,500,000;
• Engineer’s certificate authorizing management to procure the necessary services to disassemble, inspect and evaluate the condition of the “B” reactor recirculation motor generator fluid coupling refurbishment for the upcoming Fall 2009 refueling outage with Howden Buffalo, Inc., for $141,643;
• Engineer’s certificate for on-line noble chemistry injection skid for an estimated amount of $297,721;
• Task authorization with GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy Americas, LLC for engineering services in the amount of $4,225,781 that also includes a license fee through 2018;
• Amendment with Engineering Planning and Management, Inc., for an estimated amount of $1,067,700 for engineering services for transition from the existing Fire Protection Program to the National Fire Protection Association Performance Based Standard Fire Protection for Light Water Reactor Electric Generating Stations;
• Two amendments were made to a task authorization for $100,000 each with Rocky Mountain Engineering to provide continued licensing engineer  and project engineer staff augmentation services for the Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation; and
• An agreement with Performance Improvement International was approved to perform an independent third party verification of the root cause analysis of the emergency diesel generator lube oil piping failures at an estimated cost of $190,000.

The following actions were conducted for Energy Supply:

• Rejected bids for maintenance lifting equipment at the Ainsworth Wind Energy Facility;
• Rejected bids for climb assist equipment at the Ainsworth Wind Energy Facility;
• Resolution was approved on the revised surface irrigation water rates for 2009.
• Resolution was approved on the revised Spencer Hydro water compensation rates for 2009; and
• Approved dues of $75,000 for the Plains CO2 Capture Partnership..

The Board accepted NPPD’s December 2008 financial statements. Traci Bender, vice president and chief financial officer, reported that the District ended December with a deficit of $7.1 million compared to budget. The year-to-date surplus through December was $4.5 million.

The Board approved the following capital projects for Customer Services and Delivery: Shelton distribution underbuild project for $102,531; and 115-kilovolt (kV) breaker additions at Creighton for $119,274.

The following items were also approved:

• Rejected bids for sulfur hexafluoride gas transfer system and directed management to negotiate with vendors;
• Contract for installation of five five-pole storm structures between Cody and Valentine, awarded to Aerial Contractors, Inc., for $177,840
• Contract for two all-wheel drive 6x6 cab and chassis, awarded to Sioux City Truck & Trailer, Inc., for $242,000

Approval was made on changes in the Energy Efficiency Program including the approval of $500,000 to be invested in the EnergyWise loan program in cooperation with the Nebraska Energy Office. This would allow for low interest rates for loans for end-use retail customers of NPPD and its wholesale customers for the purchase and installation of high-efficiency heat pumps.

The Board recognized the retirements of Arlene G. Engel, Custodian at the Columbus General Office, Steven R. Werner, Nuclear Instructor at Cooper Nuclear Station and David W. Chrisman, Engineering Specialist at Gerald Gentleman Station.