Mississippi Power gets initial nod for coal plant

KEMPER COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI - Mississippi Power Co. has received the first level of regulatory approval in its effort to build a new coal-powered generating plant in the east-central part of the state.

The three-member state Public Service Commission ruled that the company has demonstrated a need to increase its capacity to generate electricity. The ruling came a month after the PSC held several days of hearings.

The next step in the process begins February 1, when the PSC will begin another round of public hearings to gather more information about the proposed lignite plant that Mississippi Power wants to open by 2014 in Kemper County, near the Alabama state line.

"The first phase was the need phase, and now the question is what meets those needs," PSC Chairman Lynn Posey said.

He said the ruling "does not guarantee that the plant is what we will determine best fits the need."

Mississippi Power, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Co., says the plant would use a new technology that converts a soft coal called lignite into a gas that would fuel turbines to create electricity. Company officials say the lignite would be locally mined and cheaper than natural gas.

The technology is known as IGCC, or Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle. Southern Co. announced in September that it would build the first IGCC plant in China, with operation expected to begin in 2011.

Mississippi Power spokeswoman Cindy Duvall said in a statement that PSC was "thorough and fair" in the first phase of hearings, and company executives look forward to presenting their case for the IGCC plant in the second phase.

"This will provide our customers with the best possible option for their electric service and the future economy of south Mississippi," Duvall said.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, in a conference call from Iraq, said the Mississippi Power proposal is "critically important" because it would use an in-state natural resource to generate electricity.

Mississippi Power is the first company trying to use a 2008 state law that allows utility companies to seek rate increases to help pay for construction of facilities before they're open. Under the old law, a company had to wait until a facility was generating power to ask the PSC to approve a rate increase.

Opponents, including the Sierra Club, said the plant north of Meridian is unnecessary and that it would be dirty and expensive. Louie Miller, the Sierra Club's executive director in Mississippi, said his group has filed legal papers asking the PSC to unseal documents showing how much bills might increase for Mississippi Power's commercial and residential customers to help pay for the plant.

"We still maintain, and I think at the end of the day the PSC will agree, this facility is not the most cost-effective way to meet that need" to generate more electricity, Miller said.

Mississippi Power has 23 generating units in south Mississippi. Six of them use coal and 17 use natural gas.

Company president Anthony Topazi told the PSC last month that natural gas prices are too unpredictable. He said the company has secured 20 years' worth of lignite mineral rights at a set price.

Related News

FPL Proposes Significant Rate Hikes Over Four Years

FPL Proposes Significant Rate Hikes Over Four Years

MIAMI - Florida Power & Light (FPL), the state's largest utility provider, has submitted a proposal to the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) seeking a substantial increase in customer base rates over the next four years. The plan outlines a total rate hike of approximately $9 billion from 2026 through 2029, driven by factors such as rapid residential growth and the necessity to diversify energy generation sources.

Rationale Behind the Rate Increase

FPL's request is primarily influenced by Florida's robust population growth. Since 2021, the utility has added about 275,000 customers and projects an additional 335,000 by the end of…

READ MORE
snow electricity

'Electricity out of essentially nothing': Invention creates power from falling snow

READ MORE

washington-state-ev-rebate-program

Washington State's Electric Vehicle Rebate Program

READ MORE

nevada solar panels

Nevada on track to reach RPS mandate of 50% renewable electricity by 2030: report

READ MORE

california-gets-500m-to-upgrade-power-grid

California Gets $500M to Upgrade Power Grid

READ MORE