By Jessie Burchette
Salisbury Post
County commissioners will conduct a public hearing Monday night on Duke Energy’s request for a permit to expand its Buck Steam Station.
Duke Energy has filed a request with the N.C. Utilities Commission and other other state and federal regulatory agencies to construct two natural-gas fired combustion turbine generators with combined cycle capacity, two heat recovery steam generators and related facilities. The new facilities would generate 620 megawatts of power.
The total investment is expected to exceed $300 million.
Duke Energy also plans to retire two of its coal-fired units. Currently, Buck Steam Station has four operating coal-fired generating units.
Company officials have announced plans to retire Unit 3 which dates back to 1941 and produces 75 megawatts of power. Unit 4 is a 38-megawatt unit, would also be retired. Originally ordered and built for a Navy vessel during World War II, Duke Power bought it when the Navy canceled the order. It has been in operation since 1942.
Once completed the combined operations would produce 975 megawatts. That’s slightly more than the gas-powered generating facility off N.C. 801 built by Progress Energy and now owned by Southern Company.
The changes proposed by Duke Energy require a conditional use permit.
In addition to the generating -related construction, Duke Energy proposed to build a new administration building/ control warehouse totaling 10,000 square feet and several storage buildings.
Work on the simple cycle generator is projected to start around May 2010.
Duke Energy owns over 600 acres at the end of Dukeville Road where its Buck Steam Plant has operated since 1926.
The requested conditional use permit would deal with 300 acres of the property.
In a memo to commissioners, county planning staff determined that the planned project will not create hazardous conditions or generate significant noise, odor, glare or dust.
And the reduction in coal-fired units will cause a significant decrease in pollutants.
Commissioners previously approved a resolution in support of the project to be submitted to the N.C. Utilities Commission.
The Rowan County Board of Commissioners meets at 7 p.m. Monday in the J. Newton Cohen Sr. Meeting Room, County Administrative Offices Building, 130 W. Innes St.