Morgantown Generating Station
| Company type | Power station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electric power generation |
| Founded | 1970 |
| Headquarters | Newburg, Maryland , United States |
| Products | Electricity |
| Owner | GenOn Holdings LLC |
| Parent | NRG Energy |
The Morgantown Generating Station is an electric power facility with a capacity of 1,477 MW, owned by GenOn Holdings LLC. It is situated in Newburg, Maryland, close to Morgantown along the Potomac River. The plant began operations in 1970.
Plant description
This station comprises two coal-fired supercritical steam units, each producing 624 MW and operating as base-load generators since 1970 and 1971 respectively. Additionally, it houses four oil-fueled peaking combustion turbines rated at 65 MW each, commissioned in 1973, along with two black start peaking turbines of 18 MW capacity that have been functional since 1970 and 1971. All equipment was supplied by General Electric. Coal is transported to the site via CSX Transportation trains on the Pope's Creek Subdivision rail line. Starting in 2007, a coal barge unloading dock was established on the Potomac River.
In December 2020, GenOn Holdings revealed intentions to discontinue coal usage at Morgantown by the year 2027 while maintaining power generation through natural gas and oil. However, this timeline was revised in June 2021, moving the coal unit shutdown forward to June 1, 2022.
History
The entire generation infrastructure at Morgantown was originally developed by the Potomac Electric Power Company. Following Maryland’s electricity market restructuring, ownership transferred to the Southern Company in December 2000. The station became part of the Mirant spin-off in April 2001. Subsequently, Mirant merged into GenOn Energy in 2010, which itself merged into NRG Energy in 2012.
Operations
Dispatching of the Morgantown Generating Station is managed by the PJM Interconnection regional transmission organization.
Pollution
In August 2018, the Maryland Department of the Environment required Morgantown along with two other power plants in the state to comply with updated federal wastewater regulations by November 2020. Historically, the coal-fired units released arsenic and mercury under outdated permits issued in the 1980s. Compliance with modern standards is expected to reduce toxic metal emissions by approximately 97 percent. These enhanced effluent guidelines were finalized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2015.
Planned transition from coal
GenOn Holdings announced in December 2020 that coal-fired operations at Morgantown would cease by 2027 while continuing natural gas and oil-based generation. This retirement date was later expedited to June 1, 2022, as announced on June 9, 2021.