Mountaineer Power Plant
| Company type | Power station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electric power generation |
| Founded | 1980 |
| Headquarters | Near New Haven , United States |
| Products | Electricity |
| Owner | American Electric Power (AEP) |
The Mountaineer Power Plant is a significant coal-powered electricity generation facility situated near New Haven, West Virginia, under the ownership of American Electric Power (AEP). Established in 1980, it once featured one of the tallest chimneys worldwide at , which has since been replaced by a shorter, broader chimney that accommodates electrostatic precipitator and scrubber equipment.
With a net output rating of 1300 megawatts, the plant's two turbines collectively offer around 1480 MW capacity, typically producing an average of 1420 MW. The difference in capacity is utilized to meet the plant’s internal energy demands. It employs a closed-loop cooling system but still requires approximately per hour of makeup water drawn from the Ohio River to offset losses incurred through cooling tower evaporation and emissions control processes.
On average, the facility consumes about 9,000 tons (8,200 metric tons) of coal daily. This fuel is delivered partly by barge along the Ohio River and partly sourced from Big River Mining’s underground mine located directly across the street, which ceased operations in 2010. Coal is processed and transported via a dedicated belt line directly to the plant. This single boiler with dual turbines generates sufficient electricity to power a metropolitan area comparable in size to Columbus, Ohio. The plant connects to the electrical grid through 765 kV transmission lines, representing the highest voltage level utilized within the United States.
Although often linked to New Haven, the power station is positioned just outside the town limits on land historically known as Graham Station, an area predominantly occupied by both the Mountaineer and neighboring Phillip Sporn AEP plants.
Clean coal project
There were plans to install chilled ammonia technology at the facility aimed at capturing and liquefying carbon dioxide for subterranean storage, with the goal of becoming the first power station to implement carbon capture and storage on an existing plant. A pilot initiative successfully captured between 100,000 and 300,000 metric tons of CO₂ annually from the Mountaineer’s total emissions of 8.5 million tons. AEP partnered with technology provider Alstom, investing $100 million into this effort. Nevertheless, due to changing political landscapes and diminished federal and state funding by July 2011, the project was ultimately discontinued.