Muskingum River Power Plant

Muskingum River Power Plant was a 1.5-gigawatt (1,529 MW) coal power plant, owned and operated by American Electric Power (AEP). It was located on the west bank of Muskingum River, about 4 miles (6 km) northwest of the town of Beverly, Ohio in Washington County, Ohio. At its peak, the plant powered three million households.[1] The plant operated from 1953 until ceasing generation in 2015.

Muskingum River Power Plant
Unit 5 of Muskingum River Power Plant in the background in 2010
CountryUnited States
LocationWaterford Township, Washington County, near Beverly, Ohio
Coordinates39°35′18″N 81°40′57″W
StatusDecommissioned
Commission dateUnit 1: December 1953
Unit 2: June 1954
Unit 3: December 1957
Unit 4: May 1958
Unit 5: October 1968
Decommission dateUnits 1–4: December 2014
Unit 5: May 2015
Owner(s)American Electric Power (AEP)
Operator(s)American Electric Power (AEP)
Thermal power station
Primary fuelBituminous coal
Turbine technologySteam turbine
Cooling sourceUnits 1–4: Muskingum River
Unit 5: cooling tower
Power generation
Nameplate capacity1,529 MW

Units

Four out of five plant's units were among the oldest in the United States:[2]

Unit Nameplate capacity (MWe) Commissioned Decommissioned Notes
1 219.6 1953 2014
2 219.6 1954 2014
3 237.5 1957 2014
4 237.5 1958 2014
5 615.2 1968 2015 Supercritical unit, used closed-loop
water cooling via a cooling tower

Units 1–4 discharged their waste heat (about twice their combined electrical output) into Muskingum River.

Closure and demolition

As a cost-cutting measure, AEP idled one of the units at Muskingum River in 2010.[3]

Originally slated to be converted to run on natural gas, Muskingum River closed entirely due to environmental regulations and market conditions at a cost of $150 million to $170 million.[1] Ohio's power consumption was noted as being "flat." The original proposal called for Units 1–4 to be shuttered by December 31, 2014, and Unit 5 to be converted to natural gas.[1][4] Unit 5 closed on May 31, 2015, with 150 workers laid off.[5]

AEP sold the site to Commercial Liability Partners in September 2015 to repurpose the brownfields for future redevelopment.[6] Adamo was contracted to demolish the Muskingum River.[7] Demolition was completed in June 2018 following the implosion of the plant's remaining two smokestacks.[8] In January 2021, the site was sold to the Southeastern Ohio Port Authority, who is continuing the repurposing and redevelopment process.

Accidents and Incidents

Hydrogen explosion

On January 8, 2007, a hydrogen supply truck was making its routine weekly delivery of dihydrogen (H2) gas to the station's hydrogen system, when an explosion occurred at 9:20 a.m. The truck driver was killed in the accident, and ten other people were injured. Premature failure of the pressure—relief device's rupture disc was blamed.[9]

Two civil trials in 2011, however, essentially rejected AEP's claims that rupture discs and a third party contractor were to blame. The juries determined that AEP had acted with "deliberate intent"[10] toward its own employee, Drumand McLaughlin, and with "conscious disregard" for the rights of the truck driver, Lewis Timmons, who was killed. A total of almost $13 million was assessed in damages as of August 29, 2011, including punitive damages to punish AEP subsidiaries Ohio Power Company and American Electric Power Service Corporation for their misconduct in failing to maintain the hydrogen systems.[11] The companies were also to be assessed attorney's fees.[10]

Demolition accident

On December 2, 2015, during the dismantling of a conveyor belt over a waterway, the housing for the belt line failed. One worker was killed and another was injured.[7] Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Adamo on four serious violations.[12]

See also

References
  1. Gearino, Dan (July 12, 2013). "AEP to close coal-fired power plant instead of converting". Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  2. "Existing Electric Generating Units in the United States, 2006" (Excel). Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy. 2006. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
  3. "AEP to close Picway plant most of the year". The Columbus Dispatch. June 2, 2010. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
  4. Ward Jr., Ken (June 9, 2011). "AEP would shutter 5 coal plants to meet EPA rules". Coal Tattoo. Charleston Gazette. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  5. "AEP Muskingum River Plant Closing Will Affect Local Schools". WTAP-TV. May 29, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  6. Faulhaber, Mark (September 9, 2015). "AEP sells Beverly Power Plant to industrial developer". Morgan County Herald. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  7. Guillen, Joe; Gallagher, John; Damron, Gina (December 2, 2015). "Demolition exec John Adamo Jr. killed in Ohio accident". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  8. Patterson, Janelle (June 2, 2018). "Former AEP power plant smokestacks demolished". The Parkersburg News and Sentinel. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
  9. Frazier, Kenneth (2007). "Muskingum River Plant Hydrogen Explosion" (PPT). EEI. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
  10. Bauer, Brad (June 24, 2011). "Injured AEP Worker gets 5.5 Million Dollar Award". Marietta Times. Archived from the original on September 3, 2011. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  11. Asbury, Kyla (2011). "Marshall Jury Returns $7,000,000.00 Verdict in AEP Blast Case". West Virginia Record. Retrieved August 30, 2011.
  12. "Construction company cited for Dec. death". Marietta Times. July 16, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2018.
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