Powering on: Duke Energy signals plans for two Rowan County generation units
Natural gas-fired combustion turbines with a combined capacity of 850 megawatts slated for site where Buck Steam Station once stood, adjacent to combined-cycle plant
SALISBURY — Foresight is power.
Duke Energy took steps on Thursday to pave the way for two new natural gas combustion turbines (CT) at its Buck site in Rowan County by making a preliminary filing with the North Carolina Utilities Commission. The Buck site is located just east of Interstate 85 off of Long Ferry Road.
According to a release from Duke Energy, the 850-megawatt (MW) project would be built on company-owned land where Buck’s coal units once stood, adjacent to the 718-MW natural gas-fired combined-cycle plant that came on line in 2011.
Title Spokesperson Bill Norton said that 850 MW is enough to power more than 600,000 homes. That will come in handy as Duke Energy prepares for expected population upticks in the area. According to the Charlotte Regional Alliance, the region’s population is expected to increase by 50 percent to 4.6 million people by 2050.
Additionally, over the next 15 years, Duke Energy customers’ annual electric use in the Carolinas is projected to increase by about 58,000 gigawatt-hours, which is reportedly more than the combined annual electric consumption of Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire and Wyoming. By bringing the two turbines on board, Duke Energy will be able to serve those energy needs for residential and commercial customers. The two Buck CTs will also be the most efficient turbines in the company’s fleet which offers additional advantages to Duke Energy’s ever diversified power grid.
“Because CTs can ramp up much faster than coal, they’re more adept at helping us manage rapid drops in solar output — for example, during the pop-up thunderstorms common on summer afternoons when air conditioning needs are high,” Norton said. “We expect the new CTs to reach full load in about 10-15 minutes. As we continue adding more solar to our system, this flexibility will become even more important.”
Local officials are delighted over what Duke Energy’s plans mean for Rowan County’s prospects.
“This could not be any better news for us,” Rowan County Board of Commissioner Chair Greg Edds said. “It is a signal to us that folks inside Duke Energy are looking at our community. It is a predictor of how they feel our industrial economic growth is going to be moving in the future. It’s very encouraging.”
Rowan Economic Development Council President and CEO Rod Crider said it’s a huge boon for business as well.
“It is definitely a positive for Rowan County,” Crider said. “It is part of our infrastructure package that we can offer companies that are considering relocating or expanding.”
Crider indicated that electrical grid resiliency is an important factor in relocation decisions for potential businesses.
“Having this kind of investment in Rowan County is going to make us more competitive because we will be able to demonstrate that we have sufficient capacity,” Crider said.
For many communities around the country, growth can be restrained because of lacking access to energy. With the new site, Crider is confident it will make Rowan County an even more appealing destination.
Edds agreed.
“There are a few things that a community has to have to keep up with a modern economy,” Edds said. “For us, it is energy and water. We are blessed with the Yadkin River and we are blessed to have Duke Energy right here providing power to our community.”
Nearly 100 years ago, Duke Energy opened a coal-burning plant on the same site. That plant was taken offline in 2013 and demolished in 2018. Its conversion now to a cleaner energy source represents steps taken by the industry to upgrade its system to more sustainable power.
“Duke spent considerable time and resources to clean that up and convert it to a clean source of energy,” Crider said. “That does indicate a movement to cleaner fuels that will be able to provide our energy needs in the future.”
Norton added, “Natural gas is much cleaner than coal — emissions have declined significantly since the retirement of Buck’s coal plant, and the new CTs will use the best available control technologies to further limit air emissions.
“…At the Buck site, sulfur dioxide emissions have declined 99.9 percent, while nitrogen oxides are down 94.1 percent and the rate of carbon dioxide emissions has decreased 58.6 percent.”
The project’s cleaner, more efficient energy does not just mean less environmental impacts. It will help Rowan County residents’ pocketbooks too.
“Building new generation at current plant sites allows us to repurpose existing land and maximize our transmission system, infrastructure and local workforce, which enables more efficient energy modernization and lowers the cost for our customers,” Norton said.
The project also represents a huge tax injection.
“Duke Energy’s power plants serve as the backbone of their communities, contributing to the vitality and economy of these communities and generating millions in property and other taxes,” Norton said. “… Duke Energy is the largest taxpayer in Rowan County — we are committed to reinvesting in our power plant communities, providing local jobs and continued tax base for decades to come.”
Edds also touched on that point.
“They are already our largest taxpayer and this will solidify that for a long time,” Edd said. “Look at the services … It helps fund emergency services and fire protection. Everybody is lifted by this. Even if you are not on this side of town, the revenue that gets generated off this cascades down to help pay for services that a county provides.”
What’s next
Duke Energy must wait at least 120 days from the prefiling to submit a formal application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN). That filing will include more project details and kick off a regulatory review process that includes public input and permitting.
Down the road, the CTs could be converted to carbon-free hydrogen whenever the fuel source becomes commercially, technologically and economically viable.