| Dan River Steam Station | |
|---|---|
View of the Dan River Steam Station from NC Highway 14 in Eden, NC. |
|
| Country | United States of America |
| Location | Eden, North Carolina |
| Status | Peak |
| Commission date | 1949 |
| Owner(s) | Duke Energy |
| Power station information | |
| Primary fuel | Coal, natural gas |
| Combined cycle? | Planned |
| Power generation information | |
| Installed capacity | 276 MW, 620 MW planned |
The Dan River Steam Station is currently a 276-MW coal-fired electrical power plant, owned by Duke Energy. There are also three natural gas-fueled combustion turbines at the location that provide an additional 85 MW (and which began operation in 1968[1]), and two natural gas-fueled combined cycle turbines are planned for the near future[2].
The Dan River Steam Station began construction in 1948, and was finished the following year. Coal units 1 and 2 cost a combined $15 million and were, at the time, cutting-edge. The third unit was added six years later[3], and two natural gas-fueled combined cycle turbines are planned for the near future[4].
In 2007, Duke Energy began to pursue permission to add two new combined cycle, natural gas-fired, 620 MW generating units to its fleet: one at the Dan River Steam Station, the other at the Buck Steam Station in Rowan County. This was done in order to diversify the company's fuel sources, expand its generating capacity, and to modernize its energy generation by moving away from less efficient, more pollutive coal. When the two turbines are added, two of the three older coal units will go offline[5].