Colbert Combustion Turbine Plant
| Colbert Combustion Turbine Plant | |
|---|---|
 Aerial photograph of the now-demolished Colbert Fossil Plant. The new gas power plant on the left. | |
 Location of the Colbert Combustion Turbine Plant | |
| Country | United States |
| Location | 307 Gas Turbine Road Tuscumbia, Alabama |
| Coordinates | 34°44′27″N 87°50′56″W / 34.74083°N 87.84889°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Commission date | Coal units[1] Unit 1: January 18, 1955 Unit 2: March 1, 1955 Unit 3: July 29, 1955 November 4, 1955 Natural gas units Units 1-8: 1972 |
| Construction cost | Coal units $99,104,091[1] (equivalent to $879,990,000 in 2023) |
| Owner | Tennessee Valley Authority |
| Operator | Tennessee Valley Authority |
| Thermal power station | |
| Primary fuel | Natural gas |
| Power generation | |
| Nameplate capacity | 392 MWe |
The Colbert Combustion Turbine Plant is a combustion turbine natural gas-fired power plant operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) near Tuscumbia, Alabama. Commissioned in 1972, it is currently the oldest gas-fired power plant operated by TVA. The site was formerly home to the Colbert Fossil Plant, a coal-fired power station which operated from 1955 to 2016.
History
[edit]Work began on the Colbert Fossil Plant, then known as the Colbert Steam Plant, on October 15, 1951. The first unit began operation on January 18, 1955.[2] Unit 2 began operation on March 1, 1955, Unit 3 on July 29, 1955, and Unit 4 on November 4, 1955.[1] Each of these units had a capacity of 200 megawatts. A fifth unit began operation in 1965. The combustion turbine units were added in 1972, making them the first natural-gas units in the TVA system.[3]
The TVA board voted to close the coal-fired units at Colbert on November 14, 2013.[4] Units 1 through 4 were retired in March 2016, with the last unit being idled on March 23, 2016.[5] The coal plant was demolished on August 25, 2021.[6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c The Colbert Steam Plant: A Report on the Planning, Design, Construction, Costs, and First Power Operations of the Initial Four-Unit Plant (Report). Tennessee Valley Authority. 1963. 35. Retrieved 2021-09-01 – via Google Books.
- ^ "TVA Exceeds 7 Million KW Power Mark". The Knoxville Journal. January 19, 1955. p. 8. Retrieved September 1, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Sherer, Dennis (February 3, 2003). "Fossil plants backbone of system". TimesDaily. Florence, Alabama. Retrieved 2019-02-01.
- ^ Mufson, Steven (November 14, 2013). "Tennessee Valley Authority to close 8 coal-fired power plants". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
- ^ "Colbert Fossil Plant Ends 61 Years of Electrical Generation". The Quad-Cities Daily. Muscle Shoals, Alabama. March 24, 2016. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
- ^ "Old Alabama fossil plant's smokestacks toppled by dynamite". Associated Press News. August 25, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.