Tenaska, Inc., one of the largest independent power producers in the United States, announced its intention to build a conventional coal-fueled electric generating facility located just east of Sweetwater, Texas, about 150 west of Dallas/Fort Worth. The Tenaska plant is noteworthy for two reasons.

• First, it is designed to capture 85% to 90% of the CO2 it produces and to use it for enhanced oil recovery efforts.
• Second, it does not propose to use integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology to recover carbon.

Tenaska hopes to begin construction in 2009 and commence commercial operation in 2014.

The new plant will be a conventional pulverized coal-fueled unit utilizing supercritical steam generating technology to burn low-sulfur, sub-bituminous Powder River Basin coal. Tenaska has not yet determined the precise carbon capture technology it will employ, but intends to capture and process CO2 and deliver it by pipeline to Permian Basin oil fields. There, it will inject the CO2 into underground formations to enhance oil recovery efforts, which will result long term CO2 storage deep below the surface.

Tenaska contends that this conventional pulverized coal plant is a technology superior to IGCC for reasons related to the type of coal burned, geographic conditions at the proposed site, and diversity of the technology employed at its plant. Tenaska indicates that IGCC works best with low moisture, high BTU, bituminous eastern coal, while the higher moisture, lower BTU Powder River Basin coal is better suited for pulverized coal technology. Tenaska also contends that IGCC technology works best at elevations closer to sea level; the proposed site for its new plant is at a higher elevation.

A potential side benefit of this project is that, if additional transmission infrastructure is needed for this project, the transmissions upgrades could provide necessary infrastructure for local wind power producers as well.

A final noteworthy aspect is that Tenaska is expecting this plant to qualify as an Advanced Clean Energy Project. This Texas program provides significant financial incentives to projects that include CO2 capture and meet emissions standards for mercury, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. Federal clean coal incentives would also be important to the economics of the project.

Hat tip: Colin Campbell, RTP Environmental Associates

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