Great River Energy announces construction of new generation facility
Elk River, MN (July 28, 1999) - Great River Energy, located in Elk River, Minnesota, has announced plans to construct a 445 megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired power generation facility near the township of Pleasant Valley, Minnesota. Upon approvals from local and state authorities, construction on the project will begin in the second quarter of 2000. The facility will provide peaking power to Great River Energy’s 29 member distribution cooperatives beginning in the spring of 2001.
The facility will consist of three, simple cycle, combustion turbines. The primary fuel for the facility will be natural gas, chosen for its low air emissions and ready availability. Fuel will be delivered to the site via the Northern Natural Gas pipeline (NNG) in southern Minnesota. A backup fuel oil supply will be installed onsite in case of interruption in the natural gas supply.
“We think this is a project that is appealing for many reasons,” said Gordy Westerlind, vice president of generation for Great River Energy. “This project is environmentally attractive-it utilizes a clean fuel and a combustion technology that has minimal impact on the surrounding environment. It’s also an ideal location, in close proximity to a fuel supply and a major transmission line. Plus it is cost efficient, allowing Great River’s member distribution cooperatives to continue to supply competitively priced power to their customers.”
The location was also selected because it will provide benefits to regional and local area transmission systems while minimizing the construction of new transmission facilities. The project will include the construction of a new substation and a short tap line to an existing 345 kV transmission line. In addition, a 161 kV transmission line will be built to the city of Austin. Five to six miles of this line will be new; the remainder will follow an existing 69 kV corridor where feasible.
Great River Energy is a generation and transmission cooperative located in Elk River, Minnesota. Its 1,600-megawatt generation system is comprised of a mix of baseload and peaking power plants, including coal-fired, refuse-derived fuel and oil plants, as well as newly constructed wind generation. Great River Energy provides electrical energy and related services to 29 member distribution cooperatives in Minnesota and Wisconsin, serving 500,000 members or about 1.5 million people. Great River Energy is a Touchstone Energy® Cooperative.
