NM6 Fact Sheet - FINAL 062211 .indd

Ninemile 6 CCGT Gas-Fired Project
Figure 1. Ninemile Point plant in Westwego, La.
In a move to upgrade its generation fleet and meet long-term
electricity needs for customers, Entergy Louisiana, LLC has asked the
Louisiana Public Service Commission for approval to build a nominally
sized 550-megawatt state-of-the-art gas-fired unit at its existing
Ninemile Point plant in Westwego, La.
The combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) facility will use modern pollution controls to produce highly efficient, clean and reliable power
and will cost approximately $721 million to construct.
and tax revenues, but the project will create as many as several
hundred jobs at the peak of construction activity. Approximately 17
new long-term positions also will be created at Ninemile 6.
The new unit will add needed economic and efficient power to the
electricity resources serving southeast Louisiana, in particular the
Amite South region. By 2015, this region will have more than 6,000
megawatts of demand.
As one of the most efficient gas-fired units in the Entergy fleet as
well as in Louisiana, Ninemile 6 is anticipated to produce fuel savings
for customers ranging between $26 million and $53 million per year.
Ninemile 6 will replace Ninemile units 1 and 2, which came online in
the early 1950s and have been deactivated. Ninemile 6 will use portions of the site’s existing infrastructure, reducing overall construction costs.
Through its advanced pollution-control systems, the unit also will be
among the cleanest gas-fired generating plants in the nation, and
its emissions will be significantly lower than the units that have been
deactivated.
The project will have a significant positive impact on Jefferson Parish
and the state. Not only will the region benefit from increased sales
Figure 2. Ninemile 6 is located across the river from New Orleans in
Jefferson Parish.
What is CCGT generation technology?
Older conventional gas-fired plants use natural gas to boil water
and create pressurized steam, which spins the blades of a turbine
that turns a generator to produce electricity. CCGT technology has
advanced features that allow more electricity to be produced in the
process. CCGT plants use combustion turbines that operate by the
combustion of compressed air and fuel turning a turbine generator
to produce electricity – very similar to how a jet engine operates.
The gases from the combustion turbine are not exhausted but are
captured in a heat-recovery steam generator, or HRSG. Water circulates into the HRSG and turns into steam. That steam is then used
to power a steam turbine generator, producing additional energy
with no additional fuel consumption. CCGT technology leverages the
highly efficient use of natural gas and the steam byproduct to produce the maximum amount of electricity at the most economic cost.
Why build a new plant?
Building a new plant at the Ninemile Point location was determined
through extensive study and analysis to be the most cost-efficient
solution to provide needed electricity to the region. The new unit
will add required economic and efficient power to the electricity
resources serving the Downstream of Gypsy area of the Amite South
region in southeast Louisiana. Amite South encompasses the area
from east of the Baton Rouge metropolitan area to the Mississippi
state line and south to the Gulf of Mexico, including the metropolitan New Orleans area. By 2015, the region will have more than 6,000
megawatts of demand. Building a new unit at the Ninemile plant site
is the most economic solution.
When will the project be constructed?
If the project is approved and receives its permits as expected,
construction will begin in 2012, with the unit expected to be online
in the mid-2015 time frame.
How many jobs will it create?
At the peak of construction activity, the project is anticipated to
create as many as several hundred jobs. About 17 new long-term
positions will be also created at Ninemile 6 when it goes into service. In addition, there will be ongoing opportunities for businesses
to provide support services to the power plant, creating additional
sales and tax revenues.
Who will get power from the facility?
Ninemile 6 will be an Entergy Louisiana facility that provides electric power to customers of Entergy Louisiana, Entergy Gulf States
Louisiana and Entergy New Orleans. Its proximity to residential and
industrial customers in southeast Louisiana and the growing metropolitan New Orleans area will reduce costs for customers.
What is Entergy doing to ensure that reliable and
economic electricity is available for the future?
The Ninemile 6 project is part of Entergy’s plan to transform its
sources of generation supply to deliver efficient, reliable and
lower-cost electricity to customers. Implementation of this strategy
includes building a new CCGT at the Ninemile Point site; acquiring
CCGT units that are for sale when the purchase is economical and
would meet reliability needs; and entering into long-term agreements with suppliers of efficient, lower-cost power.
As a CCGT unit, Ninemile 6 will be a basic building block for Entergy’s long-term generation strategy to meet customer needs with
clean, economic electricity.
Since the end of 2002, the Entergy System has added over 4,200
megawatts of long-term capacity, mostly modern, efficient gasfired capacity or nuclear. Over 2,400 megawatts of this efficient and
clean generation is serving customers of Entergy Louisiana, Entergy
Gulf States Louisiana and Entergy New Orleans today.