Entergy Progresses on Natural Gas Power, Sells Nuclear Assets

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Entergy Corporation (NYSE:ETR) (New Orleans, Louisiana) is reinforcing its investments in natural gas-fired power plants on the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast, where natural gas development has been booming for years, as it continues to reduce its holdings in nuclear energy. Industrial Info is tracking $5.86 billion in active projects involving Entergy.

Entergy recently announced it had filed for certification to construct the $937 million Montgomery County Power Station in Willis, Texas. The facility, which is being built next to the Lewis Creek Power Station, will feature a 993-megawatt (MW), natural gas-fired, combined-cycle power block with two combustion turbine generators, each with a capacity of 276 MW, and a steam turbine generator. If approved, the long-delayed project would not begin construction until late 2018 at the earliest. For more information, including schedule details and contact information, see Industrial Info's project report.

"The plant will use state-of-the-art emission control technology to lower air emissions, and construction anticipated to begin in 2019 will provide more than 2,800 direct jobs in Texas and nearly $1 billion in economic activity for the local economy," said Leo Denault, the chairman and chief executive officer of Entergy, in a recent earnings call.

Entergy also is making progress on its $1 billion addition of a combined-cycle unit at the St. Charles Power Station in Montz, Louisiana. Located next to the existing Little Gypsy Power Station, the St. Charles station is expected to generate 980 MW from two Mitsubishi combustion turbine generators and a Toshiba steam turbine generator. In July, an administrative law judge recommended supporting the certification of St. Charles, and Entergy is awaiting a final regulatory decision from the Louisiana Public Service Commission. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

"The commissioning [of St. Charles] has faced some scheduling challenges and it's been difficult for the full commission to take up major items for vote," Denault said. "However, we anticipate that the commission will be able to make a decision on this project before the end of the year."

The Northeastern and New England regions have seen a growth in natural gas-fired power generation as nuclear plants are sold off or closed. Earlier this week, Entergy agreed to sell its Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant, which closed at the end of 2014, to NorthStar Group Services (New York, New York). Thanks to the sale, Entergy now believes the estimated $1.24 billion decommissioning and dismantlement of Vermont Yankee will be completed by 2030, which is 45 years ahead of what had been scheduled; the deal itself is expected to close by the end of 2018, subject to approval from the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Vermont Public Service Board. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Entergy also reached an agreement to sell its James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Station in Oswego, New York, to Exelon Corporation (NYSE:EXC) (Chicago, Illinois). The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2017, and Industrial Info is following a planned, $23 million refueling and maintenance outage in the first quarter. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Earlier this summer, the New York Public Service Commission (Albany, New York) approved long-term financial incentives to keep FitzPatrick and two other financially embattled upstate plants operating; for details, see November 10, 2016, article - As Fort Calhoun Shuts Down, Analysts ask, 'Are Nuclear's Days Numbered?'.

Entergy's Utility business has been benefiting from new rate actions that have recovered investment expenses and improved profits. The company's bottom line also has been strengthened by its $948 million purchase of the 1,980-MW, natural gas-fired Union Power Station near El Dorado, Arkansas, from Union Power Partners LP, a subsidiary of Entegra TC LLC; the rate increases covered some of the cost. As with FitzPatrick, Industrial Info is tracking a planned, $3 million maintenance program for Union's units 1 and 2 in the first quarter. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

The new rate actions also have helped to offset the effects of weaker energy prices and lower sales to customers in the pulp and paper, industrial gases and chlor-alkali segments.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.