Council approves up to $9.52M authorization for turbocharger inspection and services at Denton Energy Center

Jose Gaetan, executive manager of power supply at Denton Municipal Electric, told council the Denton Energy Center’s 12 engines have 24 turbochargers and that OEM guidance and heavy start/stop cycles prompted earlier-than-planned inspections. Gaetan presented estimated costs: servicing all turbos would be roughly $3,000,000; full replacement of up to 10 turbos was budgeted at $4,000,000; a contingency for additional critical components brought the total authorization level to $9,520,000. He said the city would fund about $2.5 million in cash with the remainder financed via 10-year bonds.

Gaetan emphasized that the RFP proposed payment only for repairs performed and that only two vendors applied, with Acceleron US Inc. meeting all criteria. Councilmember questions focused on field data about failure rates, parts availability and expected downtime. Plant manager Arthur Pando described swing sets and hot spares, estimating downtime for an engine swap and repairs would typically be a day or two.

Councilmember [District 12] pressed for baseline inspection data and risk profiles; Gaetan said the department lacked field inspection data and would only know actual turbo condition once it had entered and inspected units. Gaetan reiterated the city would pay only for repairs performed and that budget amounts are conservative estimates to cover unknowns.

Why it matters: the Denton Energy Center provides generation capacity for city utilities; deferred maintenance on turbos could lead to costly replacements and generation outages. The council approved the contract 6–1 after discussion.

What’s next: staff will finalize contract details with Acceleron US Inc. and begin inspections; results from initial inspections should give the council a better picture of actual repair vs. replacement needs.