Kemper | EnergyNorthwest.com

Tube Leaks Cause Latest Delay to Kemper Project

March 20, 2017

The Kemper County Energy Facility will not reach full operation by its latest mid-March deadline, project owner Southern Company subsidiary, Mississippi Power announced March 16 in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

“On March 9, 2017, Mississippi Power experienced certain tube leaks in one of the syngas coolers for gasifier ‘A’ and commenced an outage on gasifier ‘A’ to perform necessary corrective actions. As a result, Mississippi Power no longer expects the remainder of the Kemper IGCC will be placed in service by mid-March 2017,” the filing says.

The Kemper County Energy Facility, a new-build, integrated coal gasification combined cycle plant located near Meridian, Mississippi, is currently three years behind schedule and $ 4.7 billion over budget. Once completed, the plant will employ two gasifiers and a carbon capture system to burn low-rank Mississippi lignite with emissions roughly equal to those of a natural gas plant.

As of the company’s last monthly SEC filing, the plant was expected to reach full operation by mid-March, following several delays over the course of the last few months.…

Kemper IGCC, Delayed Again, May Not Be Economically Viable

February 23, 2017

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Southern Co.’s Kemper County integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) project, stricken by steep cost increases and an in-service date delayed again to mid-March, isn’t economically viable in the face of projected long-term natural gas prices, the company said.

Southern Co. subsidiary Mississippi Power reported that integrated operation of the facility’s two gasifiers and combustion turbines has “continued for periods” since late January. In the past month, the project has also captured carbon dioxide and placed it in the pipeline for use in enhanced oil recovery.

However, the company was once again forced to adjust the project’s schedule after Mississippi Power determined that an outage was needed to remove ash deposits from Gasifier B’s ash removal system. The gasifier has been producing syngas 60% of the time since November 2016. During the outage, Gasifier A and one combustion turbine are expected to remain operational, continuing to produce power as well as sulfuric acid and ammonia as designed. But the full IGCC project won’t be placed into service until mid-March.…

More Delays at Kemper as $250 Million Deadline Looms

November 8, 2016

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Southern Co. has once again moved back the in-service date for the Kemper County integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plant under construction in Mississippi, this time to December 31, the company said in its quarterly report released on November 4.

Though the plant has experienced ongoing construction delays for a variety of reasons, the most recent date carries special significance. According to the report, Southern subsidiary Mississippi Power will have to repay $ 250 million in tax benefits should it miss the December 31 date.

The deadline is a result of provisions in the “tax extenders” act passed by Congress in 2015, which allowed additional depreciation for certain projects. Southern said it expects to receive about $ 370 million in total tax benefits for Kemper under this provision, about $ 250 million of which has already been received through September 30 as a result of quarterly income tax refunds. But if Kemper does not enter service before the end of the year, Southern will have to repay those benefits.…

Delayed Again, Kemper County IGCC Plant to Start Operations in a Month

October 6, 2016

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Mississippi Power’s integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant under construction in Kemper County, Miss., will likely be placed in service by November 30, a month later than anticipated. The delay will be costly.

Mississippi Power reached a new milestone on September 16, announcing that it had started producing syngas using the second gasifier—gasifier “A”—at the facility. Initial production of syngas at gasifier “B” began on July 14, demonstrating the viability of transport integrated gasification technology, which is being used for the first time at commercial scale, Southern Co. said in a statement.

In late August, however, gasifier B was taken offline for inspection, the company said in an October 3 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“The removal of ash and ash deposits prior to the inspection of gasifier ‘B’ required more time than initially expected. Additional time has been added to the schedule to allow for the restart of gasifier ‘B’ and for both gasifier trains to achieve the sustained capacity levels necessary for the initial operations and testing of the syngas clean-up systems and the production of electricity using syngas,” it said.…