Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative said June 15 that the new gas-fueled Alpine power plant in Michigan is now fully powered up and capable of generating 410 MW.
Located in Elmira, Michigan, in the state’s northern Lower Peninsula, Alpine is a natural gas-fired peaking plant featuring two simple-cycle General Electric (NYSE: GE) Frame 7F.05 combustion turbine generators.
Wolverine successfully brought Unit 1 to full load (205 MW) on June 13, joining Unit 2, which reached full load during the last week of May. Final commissioning will continue in the weeks ahead, and once complete, the units are handed off to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) for routine dispatch.
Alpine is the largest “and most efficient” generator in Michigan north of the Ludington-Midland line, including the Upper Peninsula, Wolverine said.
Alpine will be a key resource for Michigan as it faces a projected capacity shortfall in the coming years, Wolverine said. The plant will connect to an existing TransCanada natural gas line, according to the Wolverine website.
GenerationHub recently reported that Wolverine had filed a transmission interconnection agreement for Alpine with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The agreement is with Michigan Electric Transmission Co. LLC.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality issued Alpine an air permit in 2015.
The Wolverine website also notes that the cooperative broke ground in April on a new service center building. The new service center in Grand Traverse County will be 80’ x 160’ and approximately 12,800 square feet.
Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative is a not-for-profit generation and transmission cooperative headquartered in Cadillac, Michigan. Wolverine is owned by and supplies wholesale power to five distribution electric cooperatives.
