Donald Von Raesfeld Power Plant Explained

Donald Von Raesfeld (DVR) Power Plant
Coordinates:37.3769°N -121.9511°W
Location:850 Duane Avenue
Santa Clara, California
Status:O
Owner:Silicon Valley Power
Operator:Silicon Valley Power
Th Fuel Primary:Natural gas
Ps Combined Cycle:Yes
Ps Units Operational:2×1 combined-cycle (2 CT, 1 ST)
Ps Units Manu Model:GE LM6000 Sprint CT
Ps Electrical Capacity:147 MW peak (2×50 MW CT; 1×22 MW ST; 25 MW peak-firing)

The Donald Von Raesfeld Power Plant (DVRPP) is a natural gas power plant in Santa Clara, California, operated by Silicon Valley Power. Located near the San Jose International Airport it began operations in 2005 with a peak capacity of 147 megawatts.[1] [2]

DVRPP is a two-on-one combined cycle power plant, combining the output of two 50 MW combustion turbines with one 22MW steam turbine. The steam is generated from the heated exhaust from each combustion turbine, and steam output may be increased to meet peaking demands by using exhaust duct-mounted natural gas burners.

Infrastructure co-location

Santa Clara has been touted as the "data center capital of Silicon Valley" in part spurred by low power rates from Silicon Valley Power.[3] DVRPP, along with a major Silicon Valley Power substation a block away, provide redundant high capacity power sources. In close proximity are major long-haul hubs for several Tier 1 Internet backbone providers for redundant high capacity Internet connection. Many large private and co-location data centers are located in or near Santa Clara,[4] [5] specifically the area surrounding DVRPP bounded by Hwy 101, Lafayette St, Central Expressway, Scott Boulevard and San Tomas Expressway.

See also

Notes and References

  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20140203053317/http://siliconvalleypower.com/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=5763 City of Santa Clara Electric Resources - Silicon Valley Power
  2. Application for Certification for the Pico Power Project . 2.0 Project Description . Silicon Valley Power . City of Santa Clara . October 2002 . California Energy Commission . 2 May 2016 .
  3. News: The Super Bowl Comes to the Land of Data Centers . Miller, Rich . 5 February 2016 . Data Center Frontier . 19 May 2016 .
  4. News: Data Center Operators, Ranked by Sq. ft. of data center space in Bay Area as of March/April 2016 . Downey, Rosie . 6 May 2016 . Silicon Valley Business Journal . 19 May 2016 .
  5. News: The Bay Area's Biggest Data Center Operators, Ranked by Sq. ft. of data center space in Bay Area as of May/June 2015 . Druzin, Bryce . 19 June 2015 . Silicon Valley Business Journal . 19 May 2016 .