Evergy to Cut Carbon Output, Boost Wind Capacity

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Evergy, the parent company of Kansas City Power & Light, has announced plans to reduce its carbon output and add consistent renewable energy power to its fleet. By 2050, the utility provider will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80 percent below 2005 levels and will expand its wind energy portfolio by 660 megawatts. By the end of this year, Evergy estimates it will reach an emissions reduction of 40 percent.

To achieve the emissions cutback, the company plans to retire nearly all coal power plants in its fleet at the end of their useful life—estimated to be in the 2040-2050 decade. Exception is the Iatan 2 power plant in Missouri, an 850-megawatt facility that began operating in 2010.

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Moreover, the Wolf Creek Nuclear Station, the state’s first nuclear power generating station, built in 1985, and which generates about 1,200 megawatts of electricity, will continue to operate only until its license expires in 2045. Evergy’s plan includes the addition of a small amount of natural gas generation if additional carbon-free generation is not available within the timeframe.   

Higher winds

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The 660 megawatts of wind power that will be added to the company’s fleet will come from four new projects, which will boost Evergy’s total wind generating capacity to more than 4.5 gigawatts. This will place it in the top five wind energy companies in the U.S.

These four new wind projects are estimated to bring some $180 million economic benefits to the region in addition to hundreds of construction jobs and dozens of permanent green energy jobs. The facilities are:

• Expedition Wind—a 199-megawatt park developed by National Renewable Solutions in Marion County, Kan.
• Flat Ridge 3—a 128-megawatt addition to the existing 520 megawatts of wind power generated by the first two phases of the Flat Ridge project. This third module is developed by AEP Renewables near Kingman, Kan.
• Jayhawk Wind—a 193-megawatt facility developed by Apex Clean Energy in Crawford and Bourbon Counties, Kan., of which Evergy will acquire 155MW.
• Ponderosa Wind will have a generating capacity of approximately 200 megawatts of power, of which Evergy will acquire 178MW. The project will be developed by a subsidiary of NextEra Resources south of Liberal, Kan., in Oklahoma.