GE Technology To Assist The Retirement Of Colorado Coal Plant

    Colorado Springs Utilities will purchase and commission six LM2500XPRESS aeroderivative gas turbines packages.

    Colorado Springs Utilities will purchase and commission six LM2500XPRESS aeroderivative gas turbines packages.

    GE has received an order from Colorado Springs Utilities for six LM2500XPRESS aeroderivative gas turbine packages. Each LM2500XPRESS is comprised of a GE LM2500 aeroderivative gas turbine modular package, gas compressor, and emissions control system. In addition, there is a black start diesel generator included to provide startup capability in case of grid events. The units provide dual-fuel capability, primarily burning natural gas, and can use liquid fuels to help meet periods of low natural gas availability.

    The six LM2500XPRESS power generators will produce 167 MW while the utility makes transmission upgrades throughout Colorado Springs, Colorado, and retires the coal-fired Martin Drake Power Plant by 2023. The GE units will be brought online in 2022. They will sit on the site of the current coal pile at the Martin Drake plant and will remain there until 2025, at which point they will be moved to other locations in the Colorado Springs area.

    “The LM2500XPRESS units were purchased to provide safe, affordable, and reliable generation to support the increased use of renewable solar and wind power,” said Aram Benyamin, CEO of Colorado Springs Utilities. “These natural gas units will help us better integrate renewable energy sources, further reduce CO2 emissions, and accelerate the retirement of the Martin Drake Power Plant.”