Prairie State Energy Campus

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Prairie State Energy Campus
CountryUnited States
LocationLively Grove Township, Washington County, near Marissa, Illinois
Coordinates38°16′40″N 89°40′4″W / 38.27778°N 89.66778°W / 38.27778; -89.66778Coordinates: 38°16′40″N 89°40′4″W / 38.27778°N 89.66778°W / 38.27778; -89.66778
StatusOperational
Commission date2012
Owner(s)Prairie State Energy Campus (consortium)
Thermal power station
Turbine technologyCoal
Power generation
Units operational2
Nameplate capacity1,600 MW
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Prairie State Energy Campus is a 1,600 megawatt base load, coal-fired, electrical power station and coal mine near Marissa, Illinois southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Prairie State Energy Campus (PSEC) features low levels of regulated emissions compared to other coal-fired power stations, capturing sulfur from high-sulfur coal mined nearby instead of transporting low-sulfur coal from elsewhere.[1][2][3]

Ken Bone, a power plant worker who asked a question during a 2016 Presidential debate, is employed at Prairie State. He is a Control Room Operator.[4]

Project[]

Proposed and led by Peabody Energy Corporation, the project is jointly owned by public electric utilities with Peabody initially retaining 5% ownership.[5] It is operated by Prairie State Generating Company, LLC. The first 800 MW generator went online in June[6] and the second in November, 2012.[7] The project's Lively Grove underground mine was constructed to produce 6 million tons of high sulfur coal per year.[8] In 2019 it was the 26th largest coal mine in the country, producing 6.4 million short tons of coal.[9]

PSEC stated it will be "among the cleanest major coal-fueled plants in the nation"[10] through use of pollution mitigation technology, producing as low as one-fifth the levels of regulated pollutants as typical U.S. coal-fired plants.[2] Noting that projected emissions nevertheless include 25,000 tons of soot and smog-forming pollutants yearly, the Sierra Club and other organizations unsuccessfully sued to stop the EPA granting an air permit.[11]

As of 2/6/2019, the plant's ownership consists of nine municipal public power agencies including American Municipal Power, Inc. (23.3%), Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (15.2%), Indiana Municipal Power Agency (12.6%), Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission (12.3%), Prairie Power Inc.(8.2%), Southern Illinois Power Cooperative (7.9%), Kentucky Municipal Power Agency (7.8%), Northern Illinois Municipal Power Agency (7.6%), Wabash Valley Power Association (5.1%).[12]

Carbon Dioxide Emissions[]

During construction the Chicago Tribune asserted PSEC would be the "largest source of carbon dioxide built in the United States in a quarter-century."[5] The company projected a 15% reduction in carbon dioxide (CO
2) pollution compared with other coal-fired power plants based on its use of efficient supercritical steam generators and no emissions from transporting coal.[13]

Judging that regulatory limits on carbon emissions were not likely in the near future, Peabody chose not to employ a more expensive integrated gasification combined cycle design that could more easily be retrofitted with carbon capture technology.[14] The Environmental Protection Agency first proposed limits in March 2012. The limit of 1000 lbs CO
2 emissions per megawatt-hour electricity would require future coal-powered generating stations to capture approximately half of their CO
2 output. The limit would not apply to existing and under-construction generating stations, including PSEC.[15]

In 2020 PSEC was among the ten largest industrial sources of CO
2 in the United States. The Biden administration took office with a platform of transitioning US electrical generation to net zero CO
2 emissions by 2035. At the 2035 target date the plant will still have decades of expected lifespan remaining.[16][17]

A 2021 Illinois law requires PSEC plus one other municipally-owned coal power station to reduce their carbon emissions by 45% by 2035 and become carbon-free by 2045. Other coal and oil-fired power stations in Illinois over 25 MWe must become carbon-free by 2030, and natural gas plants by 2045.[18][19]

Costs[]

PSEC started delivering electricity in 2012 at prices well above market rates.[6] Some of its investors resell the energy at a loss, some raise consumer rates, and two backed out of the project.[6] PSEC's original $2 billion estimated cost attracted municipal electric utilities to invest and to sign 28 year contracts. However, as of early 2010 the estimated cost had increased to $4.4 billion, requiring investors to borrow more money and raising the projected cost of electricity to undesirable levels.[5][20] Peabody in response capped construction costs at "approximately $4 billion" excluding some costs such as coal development and transmission lines.[20][21] In January 2013, with many municipalities adversely impacted by the high prices, the SEC subpoenaed information from Peabody.[22] In a bid to exit its share of the Prairie State project, the City of Hermann, MO filed a lawsuit in March, 2015 against the Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission and the Missouri Public Energy Pool, claiming that its share of $1.5 billion in debt issued to support Prairie State imposed an unconstitutionally high level of debt on the city.[23]

Peabody divested its 5.06% stake in the project in 2016, accepting $57 million for its original investment of nearly $250 million. The buyer was Wabash Valley Power Association, a Midwest cooperative.[24][25]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Tomich, Jeffrey (January 5, 2010). "Prairie State fuels debate: Coal-fired power plant will bring jobs but symbolizes fight over climate change". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  2. ^ a b "US: Prairie State coal-fueled power plant advances". EnerPub Energy Publisher. Archived from the original on 10 July 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  3. ^ Poe, William (April 2004). "King Coal Mounts a Comeback". St. Louis Commerce Magazine. Archived from the original on 9 November 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  4. ^ Herzog, Katie (October 14, 2016). "Ken Bone: "If I was Energy King …"". Grist. Retrieved October 20, 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Hawthorne, Michael (July 12, 2010). "Clean coal dream a costly nightmare". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  6. ^ a b c Tomich, Jeffrey (June 17, 2012). "Delays, cost overruns blemish Illinois coal project". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
  7. ^ "Moving Energy Forward: Prairie State's Unit 2 of Power Plant Goes Live" (Press release). Prairie State Energy Campus. November 2, 2012. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
  8. ^ "New Illinois Mines Could Boost State's Production". Coal Age. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
  9. ^ Table 9. Major U.S. Coal Mines, 2019 (PDF) (Report). U.S. Energy Information Administration. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  10. ^ "Clean Electricity from Coal". Prairie State Energy Campus. Archived from the original on 29 January 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  11. ^ "Prairie State/Peabody". Sierra Club. Retrieved 18 October 2017. On October 25th, 2006, the Sierra Club, the American Lung Association and the American Bottom Conservancy joined in a petition to the US Circuit Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit challenging the air permit for a proposed 1500 megawatt coal-fired plant.
  12. ^ American Municipal Power, Inc. Prairie State Energy Campus Project Revenue Bonds Refunding Series 2019A (PDF) (Report). Retrieved September 16, 2021.
  13. ^ "PSEC Overview". Prairie State Energy Campus. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  14. ^ Romero, Simon (May 28, 2006). "2 Industry Leaders Bet on Coal But Split on Cleaner Approach". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 October 2010.
  15. ^ Schoof, Renee (Mar 28, 2012). "New EPA pollution rules won't apply to Lively Grove". Belleville News-Democrat. Retrieved April 11, 2012.[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ Pulver, Dinah Voyles (January 18, 2021). "Biden's climate crusade: How his plan to cut carbon emissions, create jobs could impact U.S." USA Toay. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  17. ^ Hawthorne, Michael (January 21, 2021). "Coal-fired power plant in southern Illinois a major obstacle to Biden's push for carbon-free electricity by 2035". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
  18. ^ Malo, Sebastien (September 9, 2021). "In Midwest first, Illinois bans fossil fuel electricity sources". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  19. ^ Nowicki, Jerry (September 10, 2021). "House Passes Energy Bill With Labor, Environmental Groups On Board". WGLT. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  20. ^ a b Hawthorne, Michael (July 24, 2010). "Prairie State coal-fired plant to cap costs". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
  21. ^ "Prairie State and Bechtel Announce New, Fixed-Cost EPC Agreement Providing Greater Economic Stability" (PDF) (Press release). Prairie State Generating Company, LLC. July 22, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 7, 2011. Retrieved 2010-12-30.
  22. ^ Tomich, Jeffrey (March 11, 2013). "For tiny town, gamble on coal plant becomes a fiscal crisis". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
  23. ^ Barker, Jacob (March 30, 2015). "Hermann, Mo., sues power commissions over Prairie State coal plant". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  24. ^ Tate, Curtis (January 22, 2016). "Peabody sells stake in Illinois power plant for fraction of investment". McClatchy DC Bureau. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
  25. ^ "Peabody Energy Completes Sale Of Interest In Prairie State Energy Campus" (Press release). Peabody Energy. May 19, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2017.

External links[]

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