The Role of Flexibility in a Decarbonized Economy

Today’s power grid demands flexibility. Join this webinar to learn how two power companies have improved the flexibility of their power generation resources, helping to incorporate more renewable energy into their mixes, while also enhancing reliability.
This webinar will take you from the beaches of Florida to the mountains of Colorado for two unique presentations about power generation revamping to meet the flexibility needs of decarbonization. Dania Beach Clean Energy Center, a state-of-the-art power plant that is helping to power Fort Lauderdale, Miami, and surrounding communities, and Rawhide Energy Station, a flexible and reliable power plant that is helping to meet the needs of Platte River Power Authority’s owner communities, will be discussed.
The Dania Beach Clean Energy Center is a 2-on-1 combined cycle plant that uses natural gas as its primary fuel. The plant is more efficient than the previous Lauderdale Plant, which it replaced, and is expected to generate significant fuel savings for FPL customers. The plant also has the ability to burn light fuel oil as a backup fuel in the event of an extended disruption to the natural gas supply.
In addition to its efficiency and reliability, the Dania Beach Clean Energy Center is also expected to generate millions of dollars in tax revenues for local governments and school districts, and a number of temporary and permanent jobs. As Florida increases its solar power portfolio, plants such as Dania Beach are likely to become even more important as they flexibly balance these intermittent resources.
The Rawhide Energy Station is a 722-MW power plant located in Wellington, Colorado and serves the communities of Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont and Loveland. The plant includes a 280-MW coal unit, 388 MW of natural gas, 52 MW of solar, and2 MWh of battery storage capacity. It also provides the interconnection to a 225-MW wind farm.
The coal unit at Rawhide Energy Station has a lifetime capacity factor of greater than 84%. However, as more renewable resources have been added to Platte River’s system, the needs from the coal unit have evolved. Now, flexibility has become extremely important, which means that having wide turndown capability is crucial to staying online.
The coal unit at Rawhide Energy Station can be operated from full load to as low as 29%. This flexibility allows the plant to operate in a variety of conditions, including when renewable resources are not available or when demand is low.
The other generating units at Rawhide Energy Station also provide flexibility to the plant. The gas turbines can be started and stopped quickly and the solar and nearby wind farm provide additional capacity when the sun shines and the wind blows. The battery storage system is a test of what will eventually become an important balancing tool that can store energy during times of low demand and release it back into the grid when demand is high.
The Dania Beach Clean Energy Center and Rawhide Energy Station are valuable assets for their owners and power customers. Learn more about the plants and their flexible operations during this information-filled webinar.