History
The pump-generating plant was turned over to Delta-Mendota Canal Authority for maintenance in 1994.
Funds for construction of the initial features of the Central Valley Project were provided by the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 (49 Stat. 115). The Secretary of the Interior authorized the project and the President approved it on December 2, 1935.
The San Luis Unit, West San Joaquin Division, was authorized as a part of the Central Valley Project on June 3, 1960, Public Law 86-488.
The Central Valley Project, one of the Nation`s major water conservation developments, extends from the Cascade Range on the north to the semiarid but fertile plains along the Kern River on the south. Initial features of the project were built primarily to protect the Central Valley from crippling water shortages and menacing floods. New project units were built to provide water and power to match the continued growth of the State.
Although developed primarily for irrigation, this multiple-purpose project also provides flood control, improves Sacramento River navigation, supplies domestic and industrial water, generates electric power, conserves fish and wildlife, creates opportunities for recreation, and enhances water quality.
Plan
The O`Neill Pump-Generating Plant pumps Central Valley Project water for offstream storage. The O`Neill Pump-Generating Plant consists of an intake channel leading off the Delta-Mendota Canal and six pump-generating units. Normally these units operate as pumps to lift water from 45 to 53 feet into the O`Neill Forebay. Water is occasionally released from the forebay to the Delta-Mendota Canal, and these units then operate as generators. When operating as pumps and motors, each unit can discharge 700 cubic feet per second and has a rating of 6,000 horse-power. When operating as turbines and generators, each unit has a generating capacity of about 4,200 kilowatts. The pump-generating plant was turned over to Delta-Mendota Canal Authority for maintenance in 1994. Normal operations. The plant pumps water from Delta-Mendota Canal to O`Neill Forebay. It offsets Central Valley Project pumping loads with generating during releases to Delta-Mendota Canal. O`Neill, which operates primarily as a pumping plant only generates part of the year. The authorizing legislation for O`Neill states that power generated at the facility cannot be used for commercial purposes. Therefore, the generation produced at O`Neill is allocated as project-use power for the Central Valley Project and the cost associated with generation is allocated to the irrigation component of Central Valley Project. Western Electricity Coordinating Council, California-Southern Nevada Power Area Western Area Power Administration, Sierra Nevada Region Conventional Above Ground VIP Pitch 25,200 kW 25,200 kW 1967 40 years 5,404,000 kWh 2007 50 ft
