Thursday, November 7, 2013

NOTICE OF DETERMINATION -- Trans Bay Cable Project Improvements

Posted:  7 Nov 13



1.  Brief Synopsis

The embedded Notice of Determination (NOD) is received from Kathy Comtois of the Pittsburg Planning Department, concerning construction of two new buildings, 26 parking spaces, and other improvements at the Trans Bay Cable Converter Station at 570 W. 10th Street, Pittsburg, CA.

Special Note:  Before reaching the embedded document, below, you will find two very interesting excerpts, from reliable websites, which reveal the great significance of this vital Bay Area resource's presence in Pittsburg -- and, indeed, of its very existence at all. [Added for context and because it's just plain good to know -- seemed like a perfect publicizing opportunity]

As you will see, in the embedded public document:
  • This Notice of Determination complies with Section 21152, Public Resources Code
  • The City approved this project on 19 August 2013
  • The Project Description explains the sense of this project.

2.  Excerpts from the Trans Bay Cable website:

The Trans Bay Cable, LLC is an energy transmission company in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Trans Bay Cable consists of a 53-mile HVDC [High Voltage Direct Current] cable system that runs under the San Francisco Bay to transfer existing energy from the City of Pittsburg to the City of San Francisco.

TBC has convertor stations in both Pittsburg and San Francisco. Power is used by consumers in the Alternating Current (AC) form. Because AC power cannot travel efficiently over long distances while buried it must be converted to the Direct Current (DC) form in Pittsburg, and then back to AC once it reaches San Francisco.

It is important to note that the Pittsburg Substation receives power through transmission lines from many other power plants in California and the Western U.S. Because of the diversity of its energy sources, it is impossible to identify the specific sources of power the Cable will receive, but it does include energy from renewable sources.


3.  Excerpts from Wikipedia

The Trans Bay Cable is a high-voltage direct current underwater cable interconnection between San Francisco, California and Pittsburg, California.

The 53 mi (85 km) cable under San Francisco Bay and through the Carquinez Strait can transmit 400 megawatts of power at a DC voltage of ±200 kV, enough to provide 40% of San Francisco's peak power needs.

Owned by SteelRiver Transmission Company, the line connects PG&E's Potrero Substation to its 230 kV transmission line in Pittsburg.

The system was completed in November, 2010.

The Trans Bay Cable project was the first HVDC system to use the Modular Multi-Level Converter (MMC) system.


4.  Notice of Determination




David Nelson

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