This old power plant

``If it isn`t broke, don`t fix it`` has been the philosophy used in many federal governmental central energy plants (CEPs) across the country. Funding for necessary upgrades and repairs has traditionally been difficult to obtain. Operations and maintenance budgets have often been reduced to levels where adequate preventive maintenance could not be performed. Consequently, the CEP and associated thermal distribution systems have often fallen into disrepair. Now that the concern over infrastructure is increasing, led in some instances by base closure and realignment, funding for these repair projects is now becoming available. Congressional funding of utility modernization of US Army heating plants is estimated at $200 million over the next five fiscal years. The questions that need to be asked are: What needs to be fixed? How much will it cost? Is repair or replacement the more effective use of the funding? What will Congress fund? Is privatization realistic for this specific CEP? This article will deal with many of the issues required for evaluation of the existing CEP infrastructure and the potential for third party privatization.