Granite Shore Power recently announced an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under which the parties have set a firm date for the voluntary closure by GSP of operations at Merrimack Station, New England’s last remaining coal-fired power plant, as well as the Schiller Station.
The Merrimack Generation Station is located along the Merrimack River in Bow, New Hampshire.
Merrimack Station has two coal-fired steam units and two kerosene fueled combustion turbine units for a total of 482 MW (winter capacity). The two coal-fired units serve as seasonal and peak demand resources. The two combustion turbine units primarily serve peaking roles, operating during periods of extreme intermittent demand and when generation is needed quickly to maintain electrical system stability on the grid.
The Schiller Generation Station is located on approximately 81 acres along the western banks of the Piscataqua River in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It has two, dual fuel units capable of firing coal or fuel oil, a fuel oil-fired combustion turbine, and a biomass boiler, which reach a combined total output of 155 MW (winter capacity). The units serve mainly as peaking resources for the grid with the exception of the biomass boiler, which operates as a baseload unit producing renewable energy around the clock.
GSP said its decision to set a firm closure date for coal-fired operations at both Merrimack and Schiller is part of the company’s long-standing repowering plan.
“The transformation of these power plants into new, clean energy facilities will mark the end of coal-fired generation in New England and facilitate exciting new economic growth at each location,” it said.
As part of the redevelopment plan, Schiller Station is advancing a battery energy storage system. Schiller “will be integral in supporting reliability daily during peak hours and storage for the wind power that is now being built off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard and in the Gulf of Maine,” GSP said.
Merrimack Station has been an important, yet limited, part of New Hampshire’s energy infrastructure for many years, GSP said. “It will continue to be a vital resource when energy demands are at their highest while GSP redevelops nearly 400 acres of land into a clean energy center for generations to come,” the company said.
