REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: NICHOLAS D MASCIA, PE, Assistant City Manager
Interim Director - Capital Projects Department
BROCK D. BUCHE, PE, PLS, Director
Department of Public Utilities
BY: francisco V. magos II, PE, Assistant Director
Capital Projects Department, Utilities and On-Site Project Management Division
SAMUEL NADORES, Licensed Professional Engineer
Capital Projects Department, Utilities and On-Site Project Management Division
SUBJECT
Title
Approve the First Amendment to the Consultant Services Agreement with Electrical Power Systems, Inc., of Fresno, California, to increase the total contract by an amount not to exceed $57,310.00, paid on a time and materials basis for a revised total contract amount not to exceed $106,760.00, for the Emergency Backup Generators at the B-Side Switchgear and Headworks Buildings at the Fresno-Clovis Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility Project. (Council District 3)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that City Council approve the First Amendment to the Consultant Services Agreement (Agreement) with Electrical Power Systems, Inc. (Consultant), to increase the total contract amount by an amount not to exceed $57,310, for a revised total contract amount not to exceed $106,760, to expand the Consultant’s scope of services for the Emergency Backup Generators at the B-Side Switchgear and Headworks Buildings at the Fresno-Clovis Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility (RWRF) Project (Project); and authorize the Capital Projects Interim Director or designee to sign and execute all documents on behalf of the City of Fresno (City).
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On March 2, 2022, the City approved a Consultant Services Agreement with Electrical Power Systems, Inc. to provide engineering design services for the design of plans and general construction documents for the Project. The original scope of services included design for the installation of diesel-fueled emergency generators. After reviewing various factors during the design phase, the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) decided to proceed with natural gas powered emergency backup generators. Natural gas generators were chosen to power critical DPU infrastructure during prolonged power outages primarily due to the availability and reliability of the fuel supply. After procurement of the natural gas generators, additional design services have become necessary to complete the Project.
Staff now recommends approval of the First Amendment to the Agreement to expand the scope of services to include the design of a natural gas line from the existing PG&E gas source and grading for the area of installation for the new emergency gas generators. The First Amendment to the Agreement will be funded utilizing appropriations included in the Fiscal Year 2025 Capital Improvement Budget within the Wastewater Management Division’s Sewer Enterprise Fund.
BACKGROUND
The Wastewater Management Division (WMD) is responsible for the collection, conveyance, treatment, and reclamation of wastewater generated by the residential, commercial, and industrial sewer customers in the Fresno-Clovis metropolitan area. As wastewater reclamation is considered a vital service to the public, the RWRF has been placed on the Block 50 exemption list by PG&E, the RWRF energy provider, which means the RWRF is recognized as a critical facility that must continue receiving power even during planned electricity outages. Other facilities commonly on the Block 50 exemption list include: fire and police stations, acute care hospitals, communication utilities, radio and TV emergency broadcasting stations, electric utility facilities, fuel transportation, and water treatment facilities. However, placement on the list is only temporary, and DPU must ultimately install backup generators that can adequately support critical loads.
The RWRF’s current electrical power system is fed from 70 kV PG&E transmission lines, the energy from which is converted to 12 kV by City-owned 10 MVA substations. If a substation or feeder fails, the other substation would provide all plant power through a tie breaker. If a transmission or both substations are down, an alternate PG&E 12 kV feeder can be brought in through a 12 kV breaker at the RWRF. If power is completely unavailable, the proposed emergency generator system would be brought on-line. The recent peak hourly demand has been 7.2 MW, and this corresponds to previous peak demand values in past years.
On March 2, 2022, the City and the Consultant entered into an agreement for an amount not to exceed $49,450, paid on a time and materials basis, for professional engineering services for the design of the Project. This included sizing of backup generators that would be able to support the critical loads at the RWRF, its required cabling and conduits, modifications to the existing switchgear for automatic transfer switch control, preparation of an operations plan, and assisting with the initial startup of the generators. The original scope of services included design for the installation of diesel-fueled emergency generators. After reviewing various factors during the design phase, DPU decided to proceed with natural gas powered emergency backup generators and purchased three (3) 2,500 kW Caterpillar natural gas emergency generators with a total 7.5 MW capacity that are currently being manufactured. All three (3) generators were purchased through a cooperative purchase agreement with Quinn Power Systems, an authorized distributor of Caterpillar, Inc. Natural gas generators were chosen to power critical DPU infrastructure during prolonged power outages primarily due to the availability and reliability of the fuel supply. For natural gas generators, there are three (3) possible fuel supply sources: (1) PG&E natural gas lines, (2) renewable natural gas (RNG) generated at the RWRF, and (3) liquified natural gas that may be delivered via a tanker truck to the RWRF.
Staff now recommends approval of the First Amendment to the Agreement to increase the total contract by an amount not to exceed $57,310, paid on a time and materials basis, increasing the total contract to an amount not to exceed $106,760 paid on a time and materials basis; and authorization of the Capital Projects Interim Director or designee to sign the First Amendment on behalf of the City. This First Amendment will expand the scope of services to include work related to the design of a new high pressure natural gas line from the existing PG&E gas source to the new natural gas generator set’s location. The expanded scope of work will also include the development of a grading plan. The First Amendment to the Agreement will be funded utilizing appropriations included in the Fiscal Year 2025 Capital Improvement Budget within the Wastewater Management Division’s Sewer Enterprise Fund.
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed and approved the proposed Amendment as to form.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
By the definition of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378, the amendment of this consultant services agreement for the design services does not quality as a “project” for the purpose of CEQA.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference does not apply to this action because this is an amendment to an existing consultant services agreement.
FISCAL IMPACT
The proposed Project is located in Council District 3 and has no impact to the General Fund. Funding for this Project is included in the Fiscal Year 2025 Capital Improvement Budget within the Wastewater Management Division’s Sewer Enterprise Fund.
Attachments:
First Amendment to Agreement
Original Consultant Agreement
Original Consultant Agreement-Supplemental
Vicinity Map
Location Map