Xcel plans public meeting on noise

Xcel Energy continues to study odd-pitched noises coming from its new power plant addition.

   Executives are hoping to recommend a fix in coming days, a spokesman said.

   The utility on Wednesday also announced plans for a communitywide forum on the noise issue, which is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at Pueblo County High School.

   Residents closest to the plant will receive Reverse 911 telephone notifications of the meeting, Xcel executives said.

    Unrelated to the noise issue, Xcel has pushed back the tentative start date for full production at the addition until at least March 24, according to a recent regulatory filing.    A boiler pump shaft broke in recent days and a new one is being shipped by the manufacturer, Xcel spokesman Mark Stutz said.

  The plant will continue to run at less than 50 percent capacity in the interim, Stutz said.

   Xcel recently brought in noise experts, manufacturers, contractors and engineers to study the noise, described as odd-pitched but not loud, Stutz said. The consensus is the sound is coming from the giant induction fan used to draw air through a boiler unit, Stutz said.

   A fix to the problem is less certain and still under study, he said.

   Possible fixes range from making sure all of the fittings are tight, to installing a muffler-type device to keep the noise from leaving the plant, Stutz said.

  The initial studies leave Xcel doubtful the problem will go away on its own or go away as the addition reaches full production, he said.

"There's something within the operation of that equipment that may or may not be a permanent feature. It (the noise) is not a high-decibel level but a varied pitch or frequency that is irritating," Stutz said.

   Not everyone reports hearing the noise and the noise isn't always a constant, he said.

   Xcel hopes to recommend a way to address the noise in coming days, Stutz said.

  Depending on the fix chosen, the repairs could be made relatively quickly or could prove substantial both in terms of cost and time to install, such as if the utility opts to a devise special sound-dampening equipment, he said.

   "What we need to do is find a solution both short term and long term to bring the noise down to something less irritating to folks. There's a chance any solution we do might take quite a bit of design, some amount of time and significant cost," Stutz said. "So in that respect we want to know we make the right decision."

   Xcel will continue limited operation of the plant addition during the ramp-up phase in part to keep working to identify the source of the noise, Stutz said.

  "We know it's very irritating. We're trying to find a short-term solution, not to mention a long-term solution. Unfortunately, we're just not there yet," he said.

   Testing and finishing repairs have slowed the ramp-up of the plant addition since late last year.

  Xcel originally expected the plant to start full production before the end of the year but the utility pushed back the date to fix a large number of boiler tube leaks. Such leaks are common at the outset of a new plant's operation.