Prairie State Energy Campus Explained

Prairie State Energy Campus
Country:United States
Location:Lively Grove Township, Washington County, near Marissa, Illinois
Coordinates:38.2778°N -89.6678°W
Owner:Prairie State Energy Campus (consortium)
Status:O
Th Technology:Coal
Ps Units Operational:2
Ps Electrical Capacity:1,600 MW
Commissioned:2012

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 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 emissions per megawatt-hour electricity would require future coal-powered generating stations to capture approximately half of their 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 in the United States. The Biden administration took office with a platform of transitioning US electrical generation to net zero 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. Some of its investors resell the energy at a loss, some raise consumer rates, and two backed out of the project. 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

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Tomich. Jeffrey. Prairie State fuels debate: Coal-fired power plant will bring jobs but symbolizes fight over climate change. 5 October 2010. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. January 5, 2010. 15 April 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230415193720/https://www.stltoday.com/news/article_a39b6af9-9446-5750-89c9-4ffce24a00de.html. live.
  2. Web site: US: Prairie State coal-fueled power plant advances. EnerPub Energy Publisher. 5 October 2010. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110710193318/http://www.energypublisher.com/article.asp?id=10003. 10 July 2011.
  3. Poe. William. King Coal Mounts a Comeback. St. Louis Commerce Magazine. April 2004. 6 October 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20091109213310/http://www.stlcommercemagazine.com/archives/april2004/index.html. 9 November 2009. dead.
  4. News: Ken Bone: "If I was Energy King …". Herzog. Katie. Grist. October 14, 2016. October 20, 2017. October 21, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171021060221/http://grist.org/climate-energy/ken-bone-if-i-was-energy-king/. live.
  5. News: Hawthorne. Michael. Clean coal dream a costly nightmare. 19 September 2019. Chicago Tribune. July 12, 2010. 31 August 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190831232328/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-met-coal-plant-20100710-story.html. live.
  6. News: Delays, cost overruns blemish Illinois coal project . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . June 17, 2012 . August 23, 2012 . Tomich . Jeffrey . August 23, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120823123446/http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/delays-cost-overruns-blemish-illinois-coal-project/article_ffaa187e-b729-11e1-b412-001a4bcf6878.html . live .
  7. Moving Energy Forward: Prairie State's Unit 2 of Power Plant Goes Live . Prairie State Energy Campus . November 2, 2012 . March 17, 2013.
  8. New Illinois Mines Could Boost State’s Production. Coal Age. 24 March 2011. 23 May 2011. 22 March 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120322205625/http://www.coalage.com/index.php/news/latest/971-new-illinois-mines-could-boost-states-production.html. live.
  9. Table 9. Major U.S. Coal Mines, 2019 . U.S. Energy Information Administration . September 16, 2021.
  10. Web site: Clean Electricity from Coal. Prairie State Energy Campus. 5 October 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20090129151114/http://prairiestateenergycampus.com/pages.asp?pagemainlevel=7&pageid=24. 29 January 2009. dead.
  11. Web site: Prairie State/Peabody . Sierra Club . 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. . 18 October 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171018220534/http://content.sierraclub.org/coal/environmentallaw/plant/prairie-statepeabody . live .
  12. American Municipal Power, Inc. Prairie State Energy Campus Project Revenue Bonds Refunding Series 2019A . September 16, 2021.
  13. Web site: PSEC Overview. Prairie State Energy Campus. 5 October 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20110715111401/http://www.prairiestateenergycampus.com/pages.asp?pagemainlevel=10&pageid=67. 15 July 2011. dead.
  14. News: Romero. Simon. 2 Industry Leaders Bet on Coal But Split on Cleaner Approach. 6 October 2010. The New York Times. May 28, 2006. 10 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121110171206/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E00E0D81E3EF93BA15756C0A9609C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. live.
  15. News: New EPA pollution rules won't apply to Lively Grove . . Mar 28, 2012 . April 11, 2012 . Schoof . Renee .
  16. News: January 18, 2021 . Dinah Voyles . Pulver . Biden’s climate crusade: How his plan to cut carbon emissions, create jobs could impact U.S. . 2021-01-22 . USA Today . en . 2021-01-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210121175313/https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2021/01/18/biden-climate-plan-carbon-emission-cuts-new-jobs-lots-questions/4176058001/ . live .
  17. News: January 21, 2021 . Hawthorne . Michael . Coal-fired power plant in southern Illinois a major obstacle to Biden’s push for carbon-free electricity by 2035 . 2021-01-22 . Chicago Tribune . 2021-01-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210122001546/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/environment/ct-biden-climate-illinois-coal-20210121-27fuo4lzovdejp2lf3ptpt2vqe-story.html . live .
  18. News: September 9, 2021 . Malo . Sebastien . In Midwest first, Illinois bans fossil fuel electricity sources . 2021-09-21 . Reuters . en . 2021-09-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210921022902/https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/midwest-first-illinois-bans-fossil-fuel-electricity-sources-2021-09-15/ . live .
  19. News: September 10, 2021 . Jerry . Nowicki . House Passes Energy Bill With Labor, Environmental Groups On Board . 2021-09-21 . WGLT . en . 2021-09-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210921022903/https://www.wglt.org/illinois/2021-09-10/house-passes-energy-bill-with-labor-environmental-groups-on-board . live .
  20. News: Hawthorne. Michael. Prairie State coal-fired plant to cap costs. 5 October 2010. Chicago Tribune. July 24, 2010. 2010-08-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20100830043119/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-07-24/news/ct-met-coal-plant-costs-20100723_1_expensive-coal-plant-prairie-state-energy-campus-overruns. live.
  21. Prairie State and Bechtel Announce New, Fixed-Cost EPC Agreement Providing Greater Economic Stability . 2010-12-30 . July 22, 2010 . Prairie State Generating Company, LLC . https://web.archive.org/web/20110707134305/http://www.amppartners.com/pdf/PSEC_EPC_Press_Release_Final_07-22-10.pdf . July 7, 2011 . dead .
  22. News: For tiny town, gamble on coal plant becomes a fiscal crisis . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . March 11, 2013 . March 17, 2013 . Tomich . Jeffrey . August 20, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140820021530/http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/for-tiny-town-gamble-on-coal-plant-becomes-a-fiscal/article_9a8a6837-8bdb-5f79-bab0-3a6750ab53e3.html . live .
  23. News: Hermann, Mo., sues power commissions over Prairie State coal plant . St. Louis Post-Dispatch . March 30, 2015 . April 1, 2015 . Barker . Jacob . November 29, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201129023739/https://www.stltoday.com/business/local/hermann-mo-sues-power-commissions-over-prairie-state-coal-plant/article_32637d5c-e8e6-5495-b7e6-2030f9dbd552.html . live .
  24. News: Peabody sells stake in Illinois power plant for fraction of investment . Tate . Curtis . McClatchy DC Bureau . January 22, 2016 . October 29, 2017 . October 30, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171030004204/http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/economy/article56163965.html . live .
  25. Peabody Energy Completes Sale Of Interest In Prairie State Energy Campus . May 19, 2016 . Peabody Energy . October 29, 2017.

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