With the help of Oklahoma’s robust inland waterway system, one of the most efficient electric generators in the nation will soon be part of the Grand River Dam Authority’s new Unit 3 combined cycle gas plant. The turbine, manufactured in Savannah, Ga., is the first of its kind in the Western Hemisphere and can generate 327 megawatts of power. The turbine will be paired with a steam turbine to give the plant a total capacity of 495 megawatts.
The M501J has the capability to produce 327 megawatts (MW) of electricity. Onsite at GRDA, it will be fueled by Oklahoma natural gas and operate as part of a combined cycle generator, in concert with a steam turbine, also manufactured by Mitsubishi. Together, the turbines will give GRDA Unit 3 the capability to produced 495 MW. Trucking the turbine from Georgia was not an option and transporting via rail would have been extremely costly.
“We at Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (Americas) are proud to be an integral part of GRDA’s expansion at the Grand River Energy Center,” said Dave Walsh, President and CEO of MHPSA. “The M501J, gas turbine offers the largest output and the highest performance among all gas turbines in commercial operation. When commissioned at Unit 3 in 2017, this turbine will be the 28th J-Series to go commercial, as well as the largest and most efficient single unit in operation in the Western Hemisphere.”
GRDA CEO Dan Sullivan also recognized that bringing the turbine, and many other components for the new facility, would have been difficult without the existence of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS) and the Tulsa Port of Catoosa.
“These are tremendous assets for Oklahoma,” said Sullivan. “For GRDA, the waterway and port provided the only economical way to transport this turbine to Oklahoma.”
The Tulsa Port of Catoosa is one of the largest and most-inland ports in the country.
“The waterway is an integral part of the economy and transportation network for our region,” said Bob Portiss, Port Director, Tulsa Port of Catoosa. “We are proud that the MKARNS and the capabilities of the Port of Catoosa were so beneficial to bringing this oversize cargo to our friends at GRDA.”
