Western Farmers Electric Cooperative (WFEC) has ordered two GE Vernova’s aeroderivative LM6000VELOX packages, each including an LM6000 gas turbine and a generator. The units will replace aging steam turbines at its Anadarko, Oklahoma, plant. These new units are expected to expand the power plant, currently powered by five LM6000 PC gas turbines. Two of the units were installed and commissioned in 1999, three units were installed in 2009. When the expansion is completed in 2026, the Anadarko plant is expected to deliver up to 350 MW with a total of seven LM6000 gas turbines.
“At WFEC, we continually evaluate capacity needs, while focusing on both the present and future power requirements of our members, and we are committed to maintain a reliable supply of electricity well into the future,” said Justin Soderberg, vice president of WFEC. “We selected GE Vernova’s LM6000VELOX units due to their fast start and quick ramp up/down capabilities. Rapid renewable energy growth presents system operators and energy providers with the increasingly difficult task of continuously ensuring stability of the grid and a reliable power supply, as renewable generation assets like wind turbines and solar farms are slightly less predictable by their very nature. Conversely, the aeroderivative gas turbines, powered by natural gas can help stabilize the grid and reduce the risk of electricity supply shortages.”
WFEC is a generation and transmission cooperative that serves the electric needs of 21-member distribution cooperatives across much of Oklahoma, the eastern parts of New Mexico, and into some areas of Kansas and Texas.
