Hummel Station Tells the Story of the Shale Revolution

Jim Willis
Editor & Publisher, Marcellus Drilling News (MDN)

 

Panda Power’s Hummel Station story is the story of the shale revolution; more power with less water use and radically reduced emissions. It’s a beautiful thing.

MDN told you, back in July, that Panda Power’s Marcellus gas-fired Hummel Station Power Plant, located at the Shamokin Dam along the Susquehanna River, is now “complete” and online . Hummel Station is a whopping 1,124-megawatt gas-fired electric plant built on the site of a retired coal-fired plant. This is the sequel.

The old coal plant is still there, sitting next door to the new gas-fired plant, closed down in 2014. The coal plant is set to be demolished–a process that will take up to two years due to asbestos throughout the plant. In a story about the old coal plant’s demolition, we were struck by the comparison between the coal plant and the gas plant.

The old coal plant produced 400 megawatts of electricity, the new gas plant 1,124 MW. The new gas plant produces more than twice the power, but uses 97% less water than the coal plant. The new gas plant produces 90% less sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions than the old coal plant. On and on. The differences are striking! No wonder gas is replacing coal…

In fairness, we do need to point out the old coal plant was originally built and went into service in 1949. Coal technology has changed–gotten better. So perhaps the comparison is not exactly apples to apples. Still, you can’t deny that gas plants are replacing coal plants at a rapid pace. And, for good reason.

What will occupy the space of the old coal plant? A second natgas-fired plant, of course! Here’s the story from PennLive:

A landmark former 400-megawatt coal-fired power generation plant visible from Routes 11/15 in Snyder County is to be demolished…

The plant was built by PP&L, now PPL, and went into operation in 1949. The utility sold it to Wisconsin Public Service in 1999 and Sunbury Generation bought it in 2006. The plant ceased operations in 2014.

Adjacent to the old facility is Panda Hummel Station, a 1,124 megawatt natural gas-fired generation plant that went into operation in June…

It is producing enough electricity to serve well over a million homes, general manager Mike Stahr said. Its three stacks are only 230 feet high, he noted.

Compared with the retired coal-burning facility, it is producing 180 percent more power while using approximately 97 percent less cooling water, he said.

Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions have been reduced by more than 90 percent, he added.

Its fuel is Marcellus Shale natural gas transported to the plant via a 34.4-mile pipeline from the commonwealth’s northern tier.

The same pipeline would serve a second, slightly larger natural gas power plant on the property that is in the design stage, Griegel said…

Editor’s Note: Just look at those numbers. They’re nothing less than stunning; tremendously increased power with even more tremendously reduced air pollution. This is the real story of the shale revolution and what it’s meant for Americans both economically and environmentally.

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