Construction Begins On Palomar Energy Project


SAN DIEGO, July 22, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Escondido Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler, California Energy Commission Chairman William Keese and Sempra Energy President and Chief Operating Officer Donald E. Felsinger today hosted the groundbreaking for Palomar Energy, a state-of-the-art 550-megawatt power plant in Escondido, Calif.

The event, which took place on the future power plant site, included local residents, community and business leaders, elected officials and representatives of Sempra Energy and two of its subsidiaries, Sempra Energy Resources and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E).

The clean, efficient natural gas-fueled power project will be built on a 20-acre site within a planned 186-acre Escondido Research and Technology Center (ERTC) business park in the City of Escondido. Palomar Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy Resources, is building the power plant. In mid-2006, when construction is completed, SDG&E will purchase and operate the plant.

"When it is completed, Palomar Energy will be the first new major power plant site developed in San Diego County in more than 40 years," said Felsinger. "This is an outstanding project for the region because it offers a new, clean and reliable source of electricity in a high-demand area and will help contribute to the creation of thousands of new business-park jobs."

The business park is expected to create about 4,000 new jobs in the community and represents a joint effort that involves Sempra Energy Resources and JRMC, an Escondido-based real-estate development company.

The Escondido City Council approved plans for the business park and power plant project Nov. 25, 2002, while the California Energy Commission approved the Palomar Energy project Aug. 6, 2003. On June 9, 2004, the California Public Utilities Commission approved SDG&E's regional energy reliability plan, including the purchase of the Palomar Energy project. The project completion and transfer to SDG&E is slated to take place in the summer of 2006.

Palomar Energy will be located west of Interstate 15 and south of Highway 78, near the intersection of Vineyard Avenue and Enterprise Street.

Palomar Energy will create 300 jobs over two years during construction and about 20 full-time jobs once the power plant begins operation. Benefits to the City of Escondido include an annual gas franchise fee of up to $1.5 million and a one-time sum of about $800,000 for sales tax associated with major equipment purchases. Once the plant is built, the project will provide $200,000 annually over the next 20 years to the California Center for the Arts in Escondido.

All of the power plant's cooling-water needs will be met by purchasing about 3 million gallons per day of reclaimed water from the City of Escondido's nearby Hale Avenue Resource Recovery Facility. The plant will rank as the reclaimed water facility's largest customer.

Sempra Energy Resources -- a subsidiary of Sempra Energy Global Enterprises, the umbrella for Sempra Energy's growth businesses -- develops and operates power plants and energy infrastructure for the competitive market.

SDG&E is a regulated public utility that provides safe and reliable energy service to 3 million consumers through 1.3 million electric meters and more than 800,000 natural gas meters in San Diego and southern Orange counties. Exceptional customer service is a priority of SDG&E as it seeks to enhance the region's quality of life.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE), based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2003 revenues of $7.9 billion. The Sempra Energy companies' nearly 13,000 employees serve more than 10 million customers in the United States, Europe, Canada, Mexico, South America and Asia.



            

Contact Data