OKLAHOMA CITY, Dec. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Oklahoma Gas
& Electric, the utility subsidiary of OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE:
OGE), announced today that, pending regulatory approval, it will
acquire two existing power plants to meet customers' energy needs.
The plants will replace capacity currently provided by power
purchase contracts set to expire in 2019.
The company announced it will acquire the Shady Point plant near
Poteau, Oklahoma, and the Oklahoma
Cogeneration plant in Oklahoma
City. The Shady Point facility, currently owned by AES
Corporation, is a 360MW coal- and natural gas-fired plant utilizing
circulating fluidized bed boilers that produce lower emissions due
to their design features and emissions controls. The Oklahoma
Cogeneration facility, owned by Oklahoma Cogeneration LLC, is a
146MW natural gas-fired combined-cycle plant. The company will pay
approximately $53 million for the two
plants, which currently serve OG&E customers.
"In the past five years, we've completed several critical
projects that advance our commitment to deliver energy reliably and
affordably to customers in an environmentally responsible way.
Today's announcement builds on that commitment," said OGE Energy
Corp. Chairman, President and CEO Sean
Trauschke. "Our diverse energy portfolio of natural gas,
wind, solar and coal gives us the versatility to meet a variety of
economic and environmental needs. The result is our electric rates
are 29 percent below the national average, which is a driver of
economic development, and OGE is among industry leaders in
emissions reduction performance. Many of our peer companies will
not match our level of emissions reduction for years, if not a
decade or more."
As the company begins 2019, it said it expects power plant
emissions to be significantly lower from 2005 levels; sulfur
dioxide emissions will be lower by nearly 90 percent, nitrogen
oxide will be lower by nearly 75 percent and carbon dioxide
(CO2) will be lower by approximately 40 percent.
OG&E's lower emissions are largely attributed to the
company's actions to meet federal Regional Haze mandates. The steps
taken include converting two units from coal to natural gas at the
company's Muskogee Power Plant; adding two, emissions-reducing
scrubbers to coal-fired units at its Sooner Power Plant; and
modifying burners at several of the company's generation
plants.
Trauschke added that as the company integrates Shady Point into
its fleet, it will change how the plant operates and further lower
emissions.
"We expect operational changes to reduce coal use by more than
50 percent initially, and we'll continue to explore opportunities
to reduce costs and emissions not only at Shady Point, but also
systemwide," Trauschke said.
The acquisitions also will save customers $40 million to $50
million per year and will help mitigate the negative
economic impact Shady Point's closure would have had in one of the
state's more challenged regions, he added. It is estimated
that the regional economic impact of the loss of the Shady Point
plant would have been about $60
million per year.
"With these acquisitions, we believe we've created a win-win
solution on multiple fronts," Trauschke said. "Our customers
save tens of millions of dollars each year, power plant emissions
continue to drop, Shady Point helps maintain grid stability as
growth continues in that region, and a vital community avoids a
crisis."
OG&E will seek preapproval of the acquisitions from
regulators in both Oklahoma and
Arkansas.
Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of OGE Energy
Corp. (NYSE: OGE), is Oklahoma's
largest electric utility. For more than a century, we have provided
customers in Oklahoma and western
Arkansas the safe, reliable
electricity needed to power their businesses and homes at rates
below the national average. Our employees are committed to
generating and delivering electricity, protecting the environment
and providing excellent service to our 847,000 customers. OG&E
has 6,304 MW of electric generation capacity fueled by low-sulfur
coal, natural gas, wind and solar. OG&E employees live, work
and volunteer in the communities we serve. For more information
about OG&E, visit us on the Internet at
http://www.oge.com or follow us on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/ogepower and Twitter: @OGandE. Click
here to view the OG&E corporate stewardship report.
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SOURCE OGE Energy Corp.