Capital Projects Update

Western Corridor Pump Station

Western Corridor Pipeline

The 60”-diameter Western Corridor Pipeline construction is nearly 70% complete. The remaining work consists mostly of the construction of the pipeline in areas of hard rock and construction of the bores under roadways along the pipeline route. There will also be extensive interconnection work on the BWD treatment plant property. This project is also expected to be completed late in the calendar year 2025.
 
 
 
Solar Park
NextEra is the developer of BWD’s 4.99-MW solar generating facility, and they have informed us that the contractor should be on site by mid-May. The project will cover approximately 32 acres of the 40-acre tract that is owned by BWD, and it will use single-axis tracker technology. It will also incorporate bi-facial panels that will collect light on the back of the arrays, as well as the conventional approach of collecting light on the front of the arrays. This will increase the output of the facility and lower the levelized cost of energy (LCOE). The project should be completed by late 2025 and will provide approximately 20% of BWD’s electricity needs!

Clearwell

Western Corridor Pump Station

Western Corridor Pipeline

Western Corridor Pump Station

Western Corridor Pipeline

There are now two pipe-laying crews working on the project to help speed up progress. One crew began working just east of Lincoln Street in Lowell and is heading eastward toward Hwy 265. The other crew started near the pump station and is making their way eastward toward Spring Creek. There is also a boring crew working on the road crossings, and they have nearly completed the boring under Dixieland Road in Lowell.

Western Corridor Pump Station

Work continues on the underground electrical conduit to supply power to all pumps and equipment in the pump station and should be completed in the next couple of weeks. After that, the building slab will be constructed. The 60” header pipe has been installed. This is the first good visual of what the project’s purpose is, and where the pipeline will join into the pump station. Improvements to Miller Road are also nearing completion, hopefully before school starts. Carroll Electric is also nearing completion of a new sub-station that will provide primary power to the site.

Solar Project

At their July 18 monthly meeting, the BWD Board of Directors authorized management to finalize the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with NextEra Energy for construction of a 4.99-MW solar generating facility. The project will be on the District’s property at the northwest corner of Primrose Road and Nail Avenue adjacent to the treatment facility, and the completion date has been updated to the 2nd quarter of 2025. The solar facility is projected to provide approximately 20% of BWD’s current electricity needs and will reduce its annual electricity bills by over $700,000.

Western Corridor Pipeline

Approximately half of the 60-inch diameter steel pipe to be installed has now been delivered and strung along the pipeline alignment, mostly on the East side of Interstate 49. Pipe installation recently began by the JB Hunt campus with a 400-foot-long test section to verify installation procedures. Pipe installation will proceed Eastward to BWD’s water treatment facility with a second pipe laying crew beginning work on the West side of the Interstate in the coming year. Boring under roadways will begin soon starting at Dixieland Street in Lowell.

Things are picking up at the pump station. Pipes for connecting our customer cities to the western corridor pipeline have been installed. The pump station slab foundation is being completed and electrical conduit has been placed. The 60-inch suction header pipe will arrive on site soon, and the pads for the backup generators are nearing completion. Things will start taking shape this summer when the foundations are poured, and the building is constructed during the fall.

Western Corridor Pipeline

Trenching for the 60-inch steel pipeline started in December. The trencher started near Interstate 49 just north of the JB Hunt campus and proceeded eastward across South Dixieland Street towards HWY 71. Trenching is expected to start west of Interstate 49 along the north side of HWY 612 in February. The casing pipe for a few of the road crossings has been delivered, and major shipments of the 60-inch diameter steel pipe should start to be strung along the alignment in late February.

Because of the holiday season and winter weather, things have been moving a little slower lately at the pump station. However, there has been some progress on damp proofing and backfilling the concrete trench structure and getting the generator pads constructed. Pipes and other materials are also beginning to arrive at the site in preparation for constructing the concrete slabs in the pump station building.

Western Corridor Pipeline

Thalle Construction, the contractor for the Western Corridor Pipeline, expects the first major piece of equipment, which is a very large trencher, to arrive in November. The trencher will be used to “pre-trench” rock areas along the route, which will break up the hard rock and make the actual pipe laying process go faster. Large excavators will be used to lay the pipe beginning in early 2024. Manufacturing of the 60”-diameter steel water pipes will begin in November, and pipe deliveries are expected to begin in December.

BWD Solar Park I

BWD and NextEra met with Carroll Electric Cooperative Corporation (CECC) in October to discuss the interconnection of the solar project. This meeting resulted in a proposed interconnection at CECC’s substation, and CECC is working on a cost estimate for this. NextEra has completed various site studies to enable them to move forward with development of an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) proposal, which is expected in early December. BWD will review the EPC proposal, and if it is acceptable, both parties will execute in early 2024 with construction set to be completed by December 31, 2024.

Things are beginning to really take shape at the site, and construction is progressing according to schedule. Most of the major earthwork for the pump station has been completed, as well as the concrete trench structure that will house the end of the new 60” pipeline. Carroll Electric Cooperative has also mobilized close to the site and begun construction of a new substation that will help power the pump station.

Western Corridor Pipeline

Thalle Construction, who is the contractor for the Western Corridor Pipeline, has marked the roadway and railway crossings, and most of the clearing is complete. The pipe for the project is scheduled to arrive in November, but Thalle plans to begin trenching some of the rock areas in late summer or early fall to break up the rock and make actual pipe laying activities go faster once pipe lay- ing is underway. The project is being funded with State Revolving Funds (SRF), and two reimbursements have been made by the state for project legal and engineering expenses, as well as some of Crossland’s initial startup costs.

BWD Solar Park I

BWD and NextEra executed the Build Transfer Agreement (BTA) on June 30, 2023. The BTA establishes the terms and conditions for the development phase of the project, which includes such items as site investigation, permitting, and preliminary design plans. Per the BTA, the development tasks shall be completed before December 31, 2023. After completion of the BTA work, NextEra will use their findings to develop an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) agreement that includes design and final pricing. BWD will review the EPC, and if it is acceptable, both parties will execute in early 2024.

Construction Manager, Crossland Heavy Contractors, has mobilized, started site work, and installed stormwater pollution prevention measures. They have established their construction office on site and are working on equipment submittals. Long lead items have been ordered and significant construction activities are expected to start this month. The pump station is being funded from BWD’s operations with no financing from outside sources.