In the Spotlight: Castaic Power Plant, LADWP’s Giant Renewable Battery
By Albert Rodriguez
One of the biggest challenges of getting to 100 percent carbon free is how best to utilize excess renewable energy generated when it’s not needed and how best to store it. Enter the Castaic Hydroelectric Power Plant, an existing LADWP facility located between Pyramid Lake and Castaic Lake, about 24 miles north of the Los Angeles Reservoir in Sylmar. Like all hydroelectric plants, Castaic harnesses the power of water to spin turbines that in turn produce electricity. Castaic also provides an elegant yet simple solution to the renewable conundrum. It uses excess energy, including renewable energy during the day to pump water back uphill to Pyramid Lake so that the hydroelectric cycle can start anew. This repurposed water, now moved to an elevated position, can then be released to spin the plant’s turbines at night, thus producing electricity when it is needed. This is what’s known as pumped storage.
“We’re one of the largest pump storage facilities on the west coast. It’s a unique plant, able to take on a number of operations that can provide a great deal of grid stability as we adopt more and more renewable energy. We’re very fortunate to have this facility acting as a giant battery that runs on water.”
Robert Klein, Manager at Castaic Power Plant
Commissioned in 1973, Castaic was constructed to meet future peak power demand. Up to 10,000 acre-feet of water can flow down from Pyramid Lake along the 7.2 mile-long, 30-foot diameter underground Angelus Tunnel. As a safety precaution, plant designers installed a nearly 28-story, 120-foot diameter surge chamber located at the end of the Angeles Tunnel. If the power plant were to experience an emergency shutdown, the surge chamber would act like a gigantic shock absorber, relieving excess pressure on the facility.
From there, the water can flow through six above ground penstock pipes that lead to six large reversible pump turbines, capable of generating up to 271 MW each. The water can also flow through one smaller penstock to a small non-reversible turbine, rated at 51 MW, when needed. Total output of the plant is 1,265 MW, enough to power up to 1 million homes. The water then exits into a reservoir called the Elderberry Forebay. The next day, the cycle starts all over again. The same 10,000 acre-feet of water can recirculate over and over, getting pumped uphill during the day and coming downhill at night to power the city.
“With renewables, we’re conducting more water pumping operations than ever before. Castaic is very versatile,” asserts Klein. “All of the turbines don’t necessarily operate at the same time, and we can run them individually or in a group according to the demand.”
Smooth Operators
In a facility as important as Castaic, smooth and controlled operation of the plant is the goal. There have been moments of excitement, though as in one Monday morning in 2023 when Castaic lost station service power due to failure of a 230kV Switch Yard circuit breaker. The Energy Control Center notified Castaic personnel of the importance to restore full operating capability of the units, especially as renewable generation began to increase. Thanks to proper and thorough training, Castaic staff stayed calm, ensured the safety of onsite personnel, referenced equipment drawings, and worked out the problem under pressure to get the plant back up and running in an hour and a half. This incident showcased staff capability and underlined the importance of Castaic as a facility critical to the City of Los Angeles.
Building another facility of its type today would be quite challenging. It would also require an environmentally acceptable location with the right topography, and the combination of the two are difficult to find. Perhaps that’s why Klein refers to Castaic as a “hidden gem.”
Careers
Staffing the plant and making it run optimally requires the skills and expertise of highly trained employees able to deal with a variety of complex problems. There is one main control room for the plant, which requires a Control Operator and an Assistant Control Operator. Both of them monitor the plant and interface with the Energy Control Center in order to adjust electrical generation according to demand.
Two additional operations staff monitor the plant at any given time, performing inspection and maintenance rounds. The career path for these positions is only through the Electric Station Operator classification.
In all, there are a total of 38 employees working at the plant, including 19 operators, two operator supervisors, nine electrical mechanics, two electrical mechanic supervisors, one machinist, one mechanical engineer, one principal utility clerk, one senior clerk typist and two managers. Everyone performs different tasks, but they are all united in their efforts to run and maintain the plant, working together in a family environment.
Employees can check for current, upcoming and all job opportunities at www.JoinLADWP.com.
Team Members
Electrical Services Managers:
Robert Klein
Gilbert Hernandez
Plant Engineer:
Vito Pasquariello
Trainer:
Martin Rubio
Scheduler:
Robert Martinez
Chief Electrical Plant Operators:
Gregory Lee
Justine Takizawa
Senior Electrical Mechanic Supervisor:
Christopher Stutts
Electrical Mechanic Supervisor:
Jason Van Holton
Senior Electrical Mechanics:
Joe Harris
Russell Rafkind
Machinist:
Christopher Johnson
Control Operators:
Howard Alexander
Robert Castaneda
Daniel Cervantes
Jason Slattery
Electric Station Operators:
Jimmy Alvarez
Jonathan Beatty
Raymond Bravo
Nicholas Dominguez
Stephany Escalante
Rene Escobedo
Sanco Grant III
Adrian Johnson
Andrew Martinez
Michael Murillo
Kevin Murphy
Walter Rosales
Richy Shimazu
Electrical Mechanics:
Matthew Clark
Andres Contreras
Chad Grossman
John Hanlon
Roger Rincon
Jose Rodriguez Jr.
Doyle Stepp Jr.
Principal Utility Clerk:
Sharon McCarthy-Igo
Senior Clerk Typist:
Melanie DeAnda
Photos by Noah Addis and David Westphal
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