PowerSouth, Mitsubishi Power start new Alabama CCGT

PowerSouth Energy Cooperative and Mitsubishi Power on October 23 announced the start of a new 693 MW combined cycle gas-fired (CCGT) Lowman Energy Center (LEC), located in Leroy, Alabama. The power plant features Mitsubishi's air-cooled gas turbine, the M501JAC.

The LEC, which began construction in 2020, is replacing the now-retired 556 MW Charles R. Lowman coal-fired power plant. The new plant is designed to support the growing energy needs of PowerSouth's distribution members in Alabama and Northwest Florida using cleaner, more efficient natural gas technology, Mitsubishi Power said.

PowerSouth is a generation and transmission cooperative that serves the wholesale energy needs of 16 electric cooperatives and four municipal electric systems in Alabama and northwest Florida. Collectively, the members provide electric service to homes, businesses and industries in 39 Alabama and 10 Florida counties.

LEC joins PowerSouth's portfolio of generating facilities operating with natural gas, including the McIntosh Plant (McIntosh, Alabama), McWilliams, and Vann (both in Gantt, Alabama).