by Stephen Stetson, Senior Campaign Representative, Alabama-Georgia-Mississippi
Beyond Coal Campaign, Sierra Club
Despite the fact that it has excess electric capacity, and continues to drag its feet on retiring its remaining three dirty coal plants, Alabama Power wants to build a massive new fossil fuel plant near Mobile. Sierra Club is intervening at the Public Service Commission (PSC) to remind our elected officials that we don’t need to build a new gas plant that will be around for four decades or more.
In early September, Alabama Power petitioned the PSC for permission to procure a massive amount of electricity generating ability. The company wants to build a new 720 megawatt combined-cycle gas plant, buy an existing combined-cycle gas plant, purchase even more electricity from an existing combined-cycle gas plant, and procure energy from five fairly small solar facilities.
Why all this need for new energy sources? Is it because the demand for electricity is skyrocketing?
Nope.
It’s because Alabama Power is telling the PSC that it needs to have backup energy in “reserve,” despite the fact that Alabama's demand for electricity is relatively flat or declining.
The proposed new gas plant would go on site at Plant Barry, which is a dirty and outdated coal plant near Mobile. It’s probably good that they won’t be clear-cutting a new site for the gas boilers and pipelines – but that’s about the only good news about the construction proposal. The fuel for the plant will likely come from destructive fracking, and gas pipelines are notorious for leaks and explosions.
Instead of building and buying new fossil fuels, Alabama Power should have been more ambitious with its solar procurement. Alabama gets plenty of sunlight, and solar panels are cheaper than ever. With revolutions in battery storage, it is no longer a challenge to dispatch electricity reliably from renewable sources. Our neighbors in Georgia understand this dynamic, and instead of proposing a new gas plant in its most recent long-term energy plan, Georgia Power will be bringing over 2,000 megawatts of solar energy onto the grid.
Fortunately, Sierra Club is prepared to offer cutting-edge expertise and nationally-respected testimony to the Alabama PSC, making the case that the economics simply don’t support building a costly new fossil fuel burning power plant. There'll likely be a public hearing in January, and you can always tell your elected commissioners how you feel. Stay tuned to your local Sierra Club group and the state chapter for more updates on how you can be involved in telling Alabama Power and the Alabama PSC to push past fracked gas, and build more renewables instead.