Hydro-Pumped Storage May Lead the Way for New Renewable Power Generation in Kentucky

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A proposed 1,000-megawatt (MW) hydro-pumped storage facility in Kentucky is being touted as the way of the future for renewable energy.

In July, Industrial Info looked at the coal-fired power plants in Kentucky and noted that five of them were scheduled to close between February 2015 and June 2016. Together, these power plants have a capacity of 2,028.4 megawatts (MW).

For more information, see July 29, 2014, article - Kentucky: Part Six of Coal-Fired Profiles of Nine States Suing EPA Over Clean Power Plan.

$1.5 Billion, 1,000-MW Maysville Hydro Pumped Storage
Hydro-pumped storage is being touted as a possible solution for the storage of power produced by intermittent sources like wind and solar. According to a study published last year by the Global Climate and Energy Project at Stanford University, "Solar PV [photovoltaic] and wind turbines have the highest technical potential to satisfy [the need for] affordable, accessible, sustainable and low-carbon energy resources."

A problem posed by intermittent sources is the storage of energy produced when it is not needed to satisfy demand. The study found that popular battery-based storage options are not the best long-term solution, because the energy required to produce them negates the advantages of the renewable production they support. The study points to hydro-pumped storage as the optimal solution to this problem.

Pumped storage generates electricity when water is released from an upper reservoir to a lower reservoir. This movement of water drives turbines and produces electricity, and would be used when renewable sources like wind and solar are not generating electricity. When those sources are generating, some of it would be used to reverse the turbines at the pumped-storage facility, which would carry the water back up to the upper reservoir to be used later.

Gridflex Energy LLC (Boise, Idaho) is proposing the construction of a 260-foot-high, 1,360-foot-long concrete roller dam to create the upper reservoir, which would be coupled with an excavated underground mine space for a reservoir. The project would use four 250-MW reversible pump turbine generators. Gridflex Energy filed an application with the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 2012 to conduct a feasibility study to build the storage system. Industrial Info does not anticipate construction starting before March 2017, and the project is estimated to require five years to complete.

View Project Report - 300068331

Overall, there are 44 projects under consideration in Kentucky that have an estimated total investment value of $3.78 billion. These include maintenance projects, refurbishments, environmental projects and modernizations. The new generation projects for Kentucky would increase the state's generation capacity by 2,265 MW, which would more than replace the coal-fired capacity that is due to be retired. Customers should consult the Industrial Info Power Project Database for details on other projects in Kentucky.

If your company is developing a power project that you feel deserves some extra attention feel free to contact Brock Ramey, North American Power Research Manager at Industrial Info.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, three 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.