The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) officially announced Sept. 17 that it has issued an air quality plan approval for Moxie Freedom Energy LLC to construct and operate a 1,050-MW natural gas-fired plant in Salem Township, Luzerne County.
The approval was granted by DEP’s Air Quality Program on Sept. 1.
“The application received a thorough review by the Department and we determined that Moxie’s proposal satisfies applicable emissions control requirements, including use of Best Available Control Technology and Lowest Achievable Emission Rate”, said Mike Bedrin, Director of DEP’s Northeast Regional Office in Wilkes-Barre. “This plant will also have emissions testing, recordkeeping and continuous emission monitoring requirements to assist DEP in monitoring emissions from the facility to help ensure compliance.”
Moxie Freedom submitted an air quality plan approval application to DEP on Oct. 6, 2014. The company plans to utilize a combustion gas turbine and a steam turbine to produce electricity. Each combined turbine and a duct burner will exclusively fire pipeline-quality natural gas. The burners will be equipped with selective catalytic reduction to minimize nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and oxidation catalysts to minimize carbon monoxide (CO) and volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. The project will be capable of producing 1,050 MW.
DEP published a notice of receipt of the application in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on Jan. 24 and asked for public comment. DEP then published a notice of the intent to issue a plan approval in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on May 30, again asking for public comment on the project. A public hearing on the air quality plan approval was held on July 7.
The project consists of two identical 1×1 power blocks, each consisting of a combustion gas turbine (CGT or CT) and a steam turbine (ST) configured in single shaft alignment, where each CT and ST train share one common electric generator. The turbine to be used for this project are two General Electric 7HA.02 CTs, each in 1×1 single shaft combined-cycle power islands, said the DEP in a notice of permit issuance that was published in the Sept. 12 Pennsylvania Bulletin.
Moxie Freedom on Sept. 8 filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission a notice of self-certification of Exempt Wholesale Generator status. The facility will be interconnected with transmission facilities owned and controlled by PPL Electric Utilities Corp. within the PJM Interconnection region. It is presently expected to begin sales of test energy in the fourth quarter of 2017 and commence commercial operations in the second quarter of 2018.
Moxie Freedom is a subsidiary of Moxie Energy LLC, which is engaged, directly and through its subsidiaries, in the development, ownership, and operation clean energy infrastructure projects, as well as providing consulting services to the energy industry.
