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Commercial Energy 

Oil, gas, and coal provide more than one-half of the world's energy. Today the nation is working to diversify energy sources while making the best use of traditional fuels. Tetra Tech is helping to find the most responsible ways to extract and use traditional fuels—while leading the way in many recent and emerging alternative energy technologies and approaches.

Wind Energy
As nonrenewable energy sources decline and their corresponding costs rise, energy producers have explored wind as a new renewable energy source. Wind power is one of the fastest growing energy-related markets today. Globally, wind power generation more than quadrupled between 1999 and 2005.

In open, flat terrain, a utility-scale wind plant on about 60 acres of land can generate 1 megawatt (MW) of installed capacity. A 10-acre parcel of land in a suitable location can provide enough wind energy to supply electricity to approximately 50 homes per year, according to the American Wind Energy Association and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Tetra Tech is now at the forefront of the wind energy industry. The company is currently supporting clients such as FPL Energy, PPM Energy, Horizon Wind, Clipper Windpower, BP Alternative Energy, and several other wind energy developers on more than 80 projects covering 32 states.

Greening Traditional Energy—Coal
Coal production has increased slowly and steadily since the 1950s. Today coal supplies about one quarter of the nation's energy. But can we make coal clean or green? For years concerns about the pollution generated by coal combustion has given it a bad environmental reputation.

Clean ways to use coal do exist. Tetra Tech has helped long-time client NV Energy (NVE, formerly Sierra Pacific Resources) with a successful coal gasification demonstration—a clean coal technology. The company is now poised to support NVE with new state-of-the-art supercritical units that it plans to construct in Ely, Nevada. NVE is placing its bets on coal for an additional 11,600 MW of capacity, enough to serve one million people.

Another high-profile clean coal project is called FutureGen: a $1 billion public-private partnership to design, build, and operate the world's first coal-fueled, near-zero emissions power plant. Tetra Tech prepared the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory, in conjunction with an international consortium of some of the largest coal producers and users in the world. Tetra Tech's research and development team is applying 25 years of experience with the Electrical Power Research Institute to develop cutting-edge human health and environmental risk assessment techniques for the geologic carbon sequestration, or underground storage, of FutureGen's carbon dioxide emissions.

Environmental Services for Oil and Gas Producers

Tetra Tech has spent 10 years in the Gulf of Thailand helping Unocal, now Chevron, understand the biogeochemistry of mercury present in the underwater formations from which the firm extracts oil and gas. Tetra Tech also is active in California's offshore oil and gas operations, as well as the Gulf of Mexico, supporting the U.S. Minerals Management Service's efforts to address environmental effects of deep sea oil and gas processing. Another area of significant activity has been support for clients who are developing facilities to receive liquefied natural gas (LNG). Because domestic supplies of natural gas are dwindling, companies are looking to import gas from international sources via ship in the form of LNG. Tetra Tech also has been involved in the siting and permitting of both onshore and offshore LNG facilities over the last several years, in locations ranging from northern Maine to the Port of Long Beach, California.

Nuclear Energy

In the United States, only 20 percent of our energy is nuclear. But even at this level, nuclear energy is recognized as the largest source of clean-air, carbon-free energy in North America. The use of nuclear energy, along with other energy sources, can help keep the air clean, preserve the climate, avoid ground-level ozone formation, and prevent acid rain.

Tetra Tech EC, which has roots as the former EBASCO, designed and constructed more than 20 nuclear power facilities from 1960 through 1990, including the South Texas Project Nuclear Units 1 and 2, Shearon Harris 1-4, Chin San, Waterford No. 3, St. Lucie No. 1 and 2, Laguna Verde, Bagac, and Watts Bar facilities. Institutional history is strong, and current staff includes engineers and procurement specialists experienced with the unique requirements of the industry.

Additionally, Tetra Tech is the nation's leading provider of nuclear power plant license renewal services. The company also is at the forefront of preparing applications for new plants and has been involved in six such projects.

Bright Future
Tetra Tech is already helping utilities, commercial energy providers, and the government ensure that finite energy resources are well-managed and that renewable natural resources are used to the greatest extent possible. Nuclear power plants, clean coal, and wind energy afford some of the best new opportunities. With a diverse set of services and strong past performance in many geographic locations worldwide, Tetra Tech has a bright future in its commercial energy markets.

For more information on Tetra Tech's energy services, please email info@tetratech.com.