PrintPrairie State Energy Campus is entering the final phase of project development and plans to begin construction this fall.
Prairie State, a 1,600 megawatt coal-fueled power plant being developed in Southern Illinois, will be among the cleanest U.S. coal-fueled plants, with as little as one-fifth the regulated emission rates of existing U.S. power plants, according to the project's supporters. Its carbon dioxide emission rate is targetted to be approximately 15 percent lower than the typical U.S. coal plant.
Prairie State has signed a $2.9 billion engineering, procurement, construction and management (EPCM) agreement with Bechtel Power Corporation for the power-related facilities, as well as committed to state-of-the-art supercritical technologies and emission control equipment with three global technology firms.
Coal-fueled electricity is increasingly important for energy security and has helped avoid a U.S. energy crisis by fueling more than 50 percent of the country's electricity, more than all other sources combined, according to advocates. U.S. generating capacity reserve margins have greatly declined in recent years, and demand is expected to exceed growth by a three-to-one margin over the next decade.
Supporters of the project note that in May the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission warned that consumers face a 20 to 30 percent increase in electricity prices this summer due to rising natural gas prices. Coal fuels electricity at a fraction of the cost of other fuels and is expected to represent 57 percent of U.S. electricity by 2030, these same industry sources claim.
At the same time, Prairie State said it has expanded agreements with current equity partners and brought on board a new partner.
Bechtel has an agreement in place with the Southwestern Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council for plant construction and commenced preliminary foundation work at the site in late May.
Initial craft hiring will begin this summer, with full civil work under way in the fall. The project schedule is planned to be four years.
As part of the EPCM contract, Prairie State has signed purchase orders for state-of-the-art technologies with Babcock & Wilcox Co. for the boiler system; Toshiba International Corp. for the turbines; and Siemens Power Generation, Inc. for emission controls. Supercritical technology will allow Prairie State to achieve high efficiencies and generate additional power while achieving emissions far superior to America's current generating fleet.
"These commitments represent significant project milestones that allow Prairie State to move toward groundbreaking this fall," said Peabody Energy President and Chief Executive Officer Gregory H. Boyce. "America's electricity demand continues to grow, and Prairie State will provide much-needed baseload electricity generation for a nation that is rapidly running short of reliable, affordable power."
New to the Prairie State equity partner group is the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA), in conjunction with adding the City of Naperville to the agency's membership. Existing partners -- Kentucky Municipal Power Agency (KMPA), Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission (MJMEUC), Northern Illinois Municipal Power Agency (NIMPA), and Prairie Power Inc. -- have each increased their equity ownership positions. The partner group also includes Indiana Municipal Power Agency (IMPA).
These partner commitments for the 1,600 megawatt plant have reached approximately 1,000 megawatts, with another 300 megawatts expected to be added soon. Late stage discussions are under way with a number of interested equity partners, and Peabody expects ultimate ownership of approximately 5 percent.
The need for a clean source of low-cost electricity for families and businesses in the Midwest is underscored by the Prairie State partners.
Said IME
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