Coal mines in southwest Virginia could get a new lease on life if Dominion Energy makes good on plans to invest more than $1.8 billion to build a pumped hydroelectric storage station.
The company told the Bluefield Daily Telegraph newspaper that it is currently looking at a number of sites in the coalfield counties for the project.
Legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly authorized electric utilities like Dominion to apply to the Virginia State Corporation Commission for permission to build pumped hydroelectric storage facilities in the coalfield region.
Pumped hydroelectric storage facilities act as large batteries that store energy in the form of water. When demand for electricity is low water is pumped from a lower reservoir to a higher storage facility. When demand is high, the stored water is released to spin a turbine and generate electricity. Hydroelectric power is one of the least expensive forms of electricity and produces virtually no emissions. The water can be recycled in a closed loop and is one of the few utility scale energy storage options available.
Dominion currently operates a 3,000 megawatt, six-unit pumped hydroelectric storage station in Bath County, Va. Its water level fluctuates 105 feet during operation. The facility entered service in 1985. It is owned jointly by Dominion Energy (60%) and Allegheny Power System (40%).
The coalfield project is in its early stages. The newspaper says that planning, permitting and construction could take as much as seven years to complete.
To contact the author of this article, email david.wagman@ieeeglobalspec.com
Author : Internet From : globalspec Release times : 2018.03.17
Views : 1435
Coal mines in southwest Virginia could get a new lease on life if Dominion Energy makes good on plans to invest more than $1.8 billion to build a pumped hydroelectric storage station.
The company told the Bluefield Daily Telegraph newspaper that it is currently looking at a number of sites in the coalfield counties for the project.
Legislation passed by the Virginia General Assembly authorized electric utilities like Dominion to apply to the Virginia State Corporation Commission for permission to build pumped hydroelectric storage facilities in the coalfield region.
Pumped hydroelectric storage facilities act as large batteries that store energy in the form of water. When demand for electricity is low water is pumped from a lower reservoir to a higher storage facility. When demand is high, the stored water is released to spin a turbine and generate electricity. Hydroelectric power is one of the least expensive forms of electricity and produces virtually no emissions. The water can be recycled in a closed loop and is one of the few utility scale energy storage options available.
Dominion currently operates a 3,000 megawatt, six-unit pumped hydroelectric storage station in Bath County, Va. Its water level fluctuates 105 feet during operation. The facility entered service in 1985. It is owned jointly by Dominion Energy (60%) and Allegheny Power System (40%).
The coalfield project is in its early stages. The newspaper says that planning, permitting and construction could take as much as seven years to complete.
To contact the author of this article, email david.wagman@ieeeglobalspec.com
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