If plans are approved by the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Penn State could begin construction on a $13 million addition to an east campus power plant by January, said Rhett McLaren, environmental compliance specialist.
The project would add a new combustion turbine, a heat recovery steam generator and a new building connected to the East Campus Steam Plant, Office of Physical Plant (OPP) Superintendent of Steam Services Paul Moser said.
University spokeswoman Jill Shockey said the university is "paying for the project centrally, and we will repay the cost over 20 years through utility charges."
The new turbine is so large it requires its own building and will add "major additional capacity" to the existing plant, OPP spokesman Paul Ruskin said.
The turbine will supply campus buildings with heat in the event of an emergency or on unusually cold mornings, he said, adding it will help meet the increased energy needs that come with the university's construction projects.
The university needs the addition to the power plant because it has new ongoing construction on east campus, Ruskin said, citing the $215 million Millennium Science Complex, currently under construction, as an example.
"This allows us to have better backup support for critical functions of the university," Ruskin said. "The new turbine and the plant will support the increased need for utilities on the eastern side of campus, and it will enhance the ability for us to provide utilities during an emergency."
DEP has been working with the university for about six months to ensure the project meets certain emissions requirements, said David Aldenderfer, air program manager for the DEP's north central office.
The project is currently in a 30-day public comment phase that began this week, in which the university publishes details of the project and invites public comment.
After the comment phase, the DEP can issue a plan approval, or construction permit, Aldenderfer said. That could come as early as late December.
"Our job and evaluation is to decide whether it meets the regulator requirements for minimizing emissions," he said. "We believe that's been met. We're taking comments from the public on whether or not they think it's OK."
DEP has not yet received any comments on the project, but Aldenderfer said that's expected.
"It's not typical that we get comments, because most people are a bit lost in the details," he said. "This one was not simple."
The turbine is cost-effective because it allows the university to produce its own energy, Ruskin said. In addition, it will run on natural gas, which is "in line with our environmental strategy," he added.
Two other turbines are already in use at the plant, Moser said. Each turbine can produce 100,000 pounds of steam per hour.
