Mitsubishi Power and the Grand River Dam Authority have formally signed an agreement to provide a second advanced class gas turbine to the Grand River Energy Center in Chouteau, Okla.
It will be the first M501JAC gas turbine to operate in simple cycle in the U.S., providing operational flexibility and fast start-up times to meet the needs of GRDA’s evolving electricity grid, an Oct. 4 news release said.
Unit 4 replaces the last remaining coal-fired unit at the Grand River Energy Center. It represents a market shift towards using advanced-class gas turbines for peaking applications, Mitsubishi Power and GRDA said.
This is the second project the GRDA has awarded to Mitsubishi Power for its Grand River Energy Center in the last 10 years and builds on the long-term relationship between the two companies.
The first-ever J-series advanced gas turbine to operate in the U.S. is located at the Center’s Unit 3 project, a 500-megawatt gas turbine combined cycle power station that began operations in 2017.
The signing ceremony for Unit 4 was held October 2 at the Energy Center where it was also announced that construction on the project is slated to begin in January 2024, with the unit expected to be operational by April 2026.
Both agreements also include the performance of long-term service and maintenance, replacement parts supply, and remote monitoring of the units.
The M501JAC enhanced air-cooled gas turbine for Unit 4 will replace the Energy Center’s Unit 2, a 492-MW coal-fired generator that came online in 1985.
The Unit 4 gas turbine is also hydrogen-capable and can be adapted in the future to operate on a blend or 100% hydrogen.
