Conemaugh Generating Station
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Conemaugh Generating Station is an operating power station of at least 1872-megawatts (MW) in New Florence, Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Conemaugh Generating Station | New Florence, Indiana, Pennsylvania, United States | 40.383233, -79.061144 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 2: 40.383233, -79.061144
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | operating | coal: bituminous | 936 | supercritical | 1970 | 2028 (planned) |
| Unit 2 | operating | coal: bituminous | 936 | supercritical | 1971 | 2028 (planned) |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Montour LLC [22%]; Chief Conemaugh Power LLC [35%]; Conemaugh Power Pass-Through Holders LLC [16%]; other [3%]; Chief Conemaugh Power II LLC [22%] | Chief Conemaugh Power LLC [35.1%]; other [3.7%]; NRG Energy Inc |
| Unit 2 | Montour LLC [22%]; Chief Conemaugh Power LLC [35%]; Conemaugh Power Pass-Through Holders LLC [16%]; other [3%]; Chief Conemaugh Power II LLC [22%] | Chief Conemaugh Power LLC [35.1%]; other [3.7%]; NRG Energy Inc |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Bailey Mine (Consol), Lowry Mine (Rosebud mining), Cumberland Mine (Contura), Ernest Mine (Gulf), Mast Mine (P&N Coal), Fieg Bros (RFI), Tasara Strips (RFI), Laurel Sand and Stone Mine (Kacey Material Handeling), Mine No 1 (RFI), Hoover Job Mine (RFI)
Plant Ownership
In 2003 Allegheny Energy sold its 4,86% to UGI Corp.[1] growings its stake to 5,96%.[2]
In 2014 Exelon sold its 31,28% share to Arclight Capital Partners[3]
In 2015 Duquesne keystone LLC sold its 3.83% share to Arclight Capital Partners (Chief Keystone Power).[4]
In 2018 NRG Energy subsidiary Keystone Power LLC sold its 3.72% share to Bowfin KeyCon Energy. [5]
In 2018 GenOn Energy transferred its ownership to the power plants bond (PTC) holders during their chapter 11 bankruptcy procedures.[6]
In 2019 PSEG sold its 22.84% share to Arclight Capital Partners. [7]
Talen energy holds a 16.25% stake in the facility.[8]
Planned retirements
According to reporting from November 2021, Conemaugh power station was slated to retire by December 31, 2028.[9]
Emissions Data
- 2006 CO2 Emissions: 13,991,064 tons
- 2006 SO2 Emissions: 8,037 tons
- 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh:
- 2006 NOx Emissions: 23,367 tons
- 2005 Mercury Emissions: 500 lb.
Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Conemaugh
In 2010, Abt Associates issued a study commissioned by the Clean Air Task Force, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, quantifying the deaths and other health effects attributable to fine particle pollution from coal-fired power plants.[10] Fine particle pollution consists of a complex mixture of soot, heavy metals, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Among these particles, the most dangerous are those less than 2.5 microns in diameter, which are so tiny that they can evade the lung's natural defenses, enter the bloodstream, and be transported to vital organs. Impacts are especially severe among the elderly, children, and those with respiratory disease. The study found that over 13,000 deaths and tens of thousands of cases of chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis, asthma, congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, dysrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, chronic lung disease, and pneumonia each year are attributable to fine particle pollution from U.S. coal plant emissions. These deaths and illnesses are major examples of coal's external costs, i.e. uncompensated harms inflicted upon the public at large. Low-income and minority populations are disproportionately impacted as well, due to the tendency of companies to avoid locating power plants upwind of affluent communities. To monetize the health impact of fine particle pollution from each coal plant, Abt assigned a value of $7,300,000 to each 2010 mortality, based on a range of government and private studies. Valuations of illnesses ranged from $52 for an asthma episode to $440,000 for a case of chronic bronchitis.[11]
Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Conemaugh Generating Station
| Type of Impact | Annual Incidence | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Deaths | 27 | $200,000,000 |
| Heart attacks | 46 | $5,000,000 |
| Asthma attacks | 430 | $22,000 |
| Hospital admissions | 21 | $490,000 |
| Chronic bronchitis | 16 | $7,200,000 |
| Asthma ER visits | 20 | $7,000 |
Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed March 2011
EPA Violations
According to New York Times compilation of 2009 EPA data the plant has violated the Clean Water Act 392 times without paying any fines.
GenOn pays $5 million settlement for violations
In June 2011, GenOn Northeast Management Co. agreed to pay $5 million to settle a 2007 lawsuit alleging its discharges of potentially toxic heavy metals helped pollute a river and violated its permits thousands of times. The plant sits on the Conemaugh River, about 50 miles east of Pittsburgh.
Since at least 2005, the plant violated the federal Clean Water Act "practically every day" by discharging excessive amounts of aluminum, boron, iron, manganese and selenium in the approximately 2 million gallons of water it dumped into the Conemaugh each day, according to PennEnvironment and the Sierra Club, the environmental advocacy groups that filed lawsuit. Some of the metals are toxic, and can harm aquatic life in a river already damaged by acid mine drainage from coal mines, the environmental groups say.
The $3.75 million portion of the settlement is the largest penalty in Pennsylvania history against a water polluter under the citizen enforcement provision of the federal Clean Water Act. Of that, $3.5 million is would help support environmental cleanups in the Conemaugh River watershed, while $250,000 is a civil penalty. GenOn also must pay $1.25 million for the groups' legal expenses.[12]
Unlined coal ash dam
In January 2023, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed the refusal of applications from six coal-fired power stations to dispose of coal ash in unlined dams. The EPA stated that the utilities operating the power stations failed to demonstrate how they would meet groundwater protection regulations. The impacted power stations were Belle River Power Plant, Coal Creek Station, Conemaugh Generating Station, Coronado Generating Station, Martin Lake Steam Station and Monroe Power Plant.[13]
Proposed Conemaugh mine
There is a proposal to mine 49 acres of a farm in Conemaugh Township. The Dovey family has asked the planning commission to rezone a portion of their 400-acre property to allow PBS Coals Inc. to begin strip mining. More than 300 residents turned out at a meeting in April 2011 in the Conemaugh Township fire hall to give their views. The property, which is located near Carpenters Park, is now zoned for single and multiple family residential, and the family is seeking a change to rural residential, which would allow PBS to bring the application process in summer 2011. If approved, work is expected to begin in the fall of 2012 and be completed in two years. The company plans to take out 10,000 tons of coal each month. Trucks will carry the coal along Miller Picking Road to Route 403, to Route 219 and Route 30 to a coal preparation plant in Central City. About 10 percent of the coal will be for domestic use; the rest will be shipped overseas for the steel industry.[14]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ "Allegheny Energy announces sale of interest in Conemaugh Generating Station for $51.25 million" Power-eng.com, February 26, 2003.
- ↑ "UGI Corp annual report 2019" ugicorp.com, annual report 2019, accessed May 2020.
- ↑ "FERC okays Exelon sale of stakes in two Pennsylvania coal plants" transmissionhub.com, December 23, 2014.
- ↑ "ORDER AUTHORIZING DISPOSITION OF JURISDICTIONAL FACILITIES" Ferc.gov June 1, 2015
- ↑ "NRG To Sell Stakes In Two Pennsylvania Power Plants" retailenergyx.com, July 3, 2018.
- ↑ "GenOn Energy, Inc. 8-k filing" Sec.gov, GenOn 8-k filing, accessed May 2020.
- ↑ "PSEG selling interests in 2 coal-fired plants in Pennsylvania" spglobal.com, June 24, 2019.
- ↑ "Talen energy 10K form" app.quotemedia.com, 10-k filing, accessed May 2020.
- ↑ “Two Pittsburgh-area coal-fired power plants to close due to new wastewater rule,” 90.5 WESA, November 23, 2021
- ↑ "The Toll from Coal: An Updated Assessment of Death and Disease from America's Dirtiest Energy Source," Clean Air Task Force, September 2010.
- ↑ "Technical Support Document for the Powerplant Impact Estimator Software Tool," Prepared for the Clean Air Task Force by Abt Associates, July 2010
- ↑ Marc Levy, "$5M settlement reached in Pa. coal plant pollution" AP, June 6, 2011.
- ↑ "EPA Announces Latest Actions to Protect Groundwater and Communities from Coal Ash Contamination," United States Environmental Protection Agency, January 25, 2023
- ↑ Patrick Buchnowski, "Conemaugh Twp. residents sound off on strip mine" The Tribune-Democrat, April 6, 2011.
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
