Facilities

Electric  |  Steam  |  Central Utilities Complex  |  Chilled Water  |  Water

Electric

Erickson
The Erickson Station was completed in 1973 and contains a single generator capable of producing 159 MW of electricity. It was recently rated one of the most efficient plants of its size in the United States. Group tours of the Erickson Station can be arranged by calling 517-702-6300.

Eckert
Located near downtown Lansing, Eckert Power Station is the BWL's oldest operating power plant. The 350-megawatt plant's generation units were installed over several years, beginning in the mid-1950s. It includes six electric generating units ranging from 41 megawatts (MW) capacity to 77 MW.

Belle River
Through our membership in the Michigan Public Power Agency (MPPA), the BWL receives 146 MW of electricity from the Belle River Plant, a coal-fired generator located near St. Clair, Michigan and built and operated by Detroit Edison Company. The Belle River Station was completed in 1984.

Steam

Moores Park
The BWL entered the thermal energy business in 1919 when it bought the steam distribution and production facilities of the Michigan Power Company. Through the 1950's, production facilities were added to keep pace with an expanding service area. Today the Moore's Park Steam Plant uses low cost coal to generate up to 660,000 lbs/hr of steam, which is distributed to its customers through nearly 14 miles of steam line.

Central Utilities Complex
In 1999, the Board of water & Light signed a Participation Agreement with Cinergy and US Filter to collectively design and build a Central Utilities Complex to supply all utilities for General Motors Corporation's New Lansing Grand River Assembly Facility. This was the first time in General Motors history, the manufacturer has relied on an outside vendor to supply all their utility services.

The Board supplies 13,200 volt electric power and 275 psi steam to the CUC complex. The complex transforms the high voltage to 480 volt power for distribution to the GM Body, Paint, and General Assembly facilities. The steam is used to power a small non-condensing turbine generator. The exhaust steam energy supplies a hot water heat system for building heat as well as supplying "process" heat.

In the summer, the exhaust steam from the turbine powers an absorption chiller. The absorption chiller along with several electric chillers and a thermal storage tank supply the GM buildings with chilled water for cooling the facilities. The CUC also supplies all GM's compressed air requirements.

The Board supplies city water to the CUC, where it is converted to demineralized water to be used in the paint process. Waste water from the paint process is returned to the CUC for processing and disposal. City water is also supplied directly to the buildings for other process uses. The CUC supplies cooling tower water to the Body Shop for cooling the robotic welders.

Energy consumption for the GM complex is monitored and controlled through the CUC's energy management system.

Chilled Water System
Fundamentals of Chilled Water
The present BWL chilled water system can deliver 10,000 tons of chilled water capacity and can be expanded to a capacity of 20,000 tons. The chiller plant has five York centrifugal chillers. Four are steam turbine driven and one is electric driven. The steam energy is produced at the BWL's Moores Park Steam Plant and is delivered to the chiller plant via our steam distribution system.

Water cooling water delivered to the chiller plant from customers enters the facility at 57 degrees F. The "primary pump" system forces the 57 degree water through the chillers, where it exits at 42 degrees. The 42 degree water enters a loop header where it is pumped back to the inlet of the primary pumps. The "secondary pumps" draw 42 degree water off the loop header and send it to our customers via our supply distribution piping system. The customer heating and cooling systems use the chilled water to cool the interior of their buildings. As the building is cooled, the 42 degree water warms to 57 degrees and is again returned to the chiller plant via the return piping.

Here's how it works. The 57 degree water entering the chiller causes the refrigerant in the chiller to boil. This transfers the heat to the refrigerant and causes the chilled water to exit the chiller at 42 degrees. The hot refrigerant gas is condensed back to a liquid by forcing the hot gas over a series of cooling tubes carrying cool cooling tower water. As the gas condenses, it transfers its heat to the cooling tower water. This warm cooling tower water is pumped up and over the cooling tower where the water is again cooled. The cool water flows by gravity back to the cooling tower pumps. These pumps force the cooling water back through the chillers where it is re-warmed and sent back to the cooling tower re-cooling.

The cooling tower is like a giant rain maker. Water enters the top of the tower and is sprayed over plastic media. Large fans blow air over the media causing the water temperature to drop. The warmer air is discharged into the atmosphere. The entire station can be remotely operated from the BWL's Moores Park Station.

Chilled Water Distribution
The Board of Water & Light's chilled water distribution system is made up large supply piping and return piping, in excess of two feet in diameter, buried in the ground. Nearly 14,000 feet of this pipe has been installed to feed customers in the downtown area, supplying chilled water at a temperature of 42 degrees F. After being used by the chilled water customers, this water returns to the BWL's Chiller Plant at a temperature of 57 Degrees where it begins a new cooling cycle.

Water

Dye Water Conditioning Plant
The John Dye Water Conditioning Plant is located on South Cedar Street, near Lansing’s downtown.
Named for a former BWL chemist, the plant is capable of conditioning 40 million gallons of water per day. A chemical conditioning process involving lime and soda ash is used to remove calcium carbonate from the raw well water, reducing hardness from about 400 parts per million, to 85-100 ppm.

The Dye Plant’s architecture reflects the art deco style prevalent when it was built in 1939. Large murals in the plant’s lobby depict the destructive and beneficial forces of water.


Wise Road Water Conditioning Plant
The Wise Road Plant was built in 1966 and has a production capacity of 10 million gallons of water per day.
The conditioning process is identical to that used at the John Dye Plant. Lime and soda ash are mixed with the well water, creating a chemical reaction that removes approximately 80 percent of the water hardness.