Charles R. Lowman Power Plant

Located on the Tombigbee River near Leroy, Ala., the Charles R. Lowman Power Plant is PowerSouth's primary generating source. With its three coal-fired generating units, Plant Lowman’s generating capacity equals 556 megawatts.

Coal is the primary source of fuel used at Lowman, with number 2 fuel oil used for start-up and flame stabilization. Each year, Plant Lowman burns around 1.5 million tons of coal to produce the steam needed to make electricity. Coal is transported to the plant by barge on the Tombigbee River and by rail.

The plant’s three operating units are equipped with electrostatic precipitators (ESPs), which preserve air quality by preventing particulate matter from entering the atmosphere. Units 2 and 3 are equipped with “scrubbers,” a high-technology system designed to remove sulfur dioxide from smokestack emissions.

Plant Lowman’s unit 1 was built between 1965 and 1969, and commercial operation started in 1969. Construction on units 2 and 3 commenced in 1976, with commercial operation beginning in 1979 for unit 2 and in 1980 for unit 3.

James A. Vann Jr. Power Plant

The James A. Vann Jr. Power Plant is adjacent to PowerSouth's McWilliams Power Plant in Gantt, Ala. Construction on the plant, which serves as base load generation for PowerSouth and our distribution members, began in January 2000, and was completed in December 2001. It boasts a winter capacity of 539 megawatts and a summer capacity of 501 megawatts. Natural gas to fuel the plant is provided through a 61-mile, 20-inch pipeline from Flomaton, Ala., to the plant site.

The Vann Power Plant was designed to incorporate the most environmentally friendly equipment available to generate affordable electricity, and it is PowerSouth's cleanest and most efficient fossil-fired generating facility to date. The plant operates using a combined-cycle process of natural gas and steam generation.

Maury A. McWilliams Steam Power Plant

The McWilliams Power Plant was the first generating plant built by PowerSouth and is a familiar landmark to travelers crossing the Conecuh River at Gantt on Highway 29, north of Andalusia, Ala.

Since the plant’s first two units became operational in the mid-1950s, and the third unit in 1959, the plant has proved a reliable source of power to PowerSouth's distribution members. The plant’s original 43 megawatts of peaking capacity, combined with its reliability to generate energy during peak loads, has proven to be vital during weather extremes.

Having used the plant to its full life expectancy, PowerSouth repowered the plant during 1995 and 1996 to help meet future generation needs. Repowering included the installation of a natural gas-fired 107-megawatt combustion turbine-generator and a heat recovery system that recycles exhaust heat to create steam, which is used by the plant’s three original generators to produce additional electricity. The repowered plant provides a 159-megawatt winter capacity and a 149-megawatt summer capacity.

McIntosh Power Plant

PowerSouth's generating units at McIntosh, Ala., include the compressed air energy storage (CAES) unit and twin gas-fired combustion turbines, for a combined winter capacity of 348 megawatts and a summer capacity of 338 megawatts.

Designated McIntosh unit 1, the CAES unit was declared commercial May 31, 1991, and officially dedicated Sept. 27, 1991. It is the only plant of its kind in the United States; the only other CAES plant in the world is in Germany.

The CAES unit uses air, compressed and stored in a 19-million-cubic-foot underground cavern, in the generation process. During peak load periods, the stored air is released and mixed with natural gas in a combustion process to generate electricity. The plant uses off-peak electricity to pump air into the cavern and then uses the air in the generation process during peak periods.

In June 1998, two single-cycle combustion turbines were constructed at the McIntosh site and designated McIntosh units 2 and 3.

Point A and Gantt Hydroelectric Power Plants

The Point A and Gantt hydroelectric power plants, PowerSouth's first generating resources, combine for a generating capacity of 8 megawatts and demonstrate an ability to provide a reliable source of capacity. Today, the plants are operated and monitored using modern technology and can be operated from on-site control rooms or a centralized control room at nearby McWilliams Power Plant.

The Gantt Hydroelectric Plant is in the town of Gantt, Ala., at the site of a former grist mill on the Conecuh River, and the Point A Hydroelectric Plant is about five miles downstream near the town of River Falls, Ala. The plants operate only when river levels allow an adequate supply of water to turn turbines.

James H. Miller Jr. Electric Generating Plant

In June 1992, PowerSouth purchased an 8.16-percent ownership interest in units 1 and 2 of Alabama Power Company’s James H. Miller Jr. Electric Generating Plant near Birmingham, Ala. PowerSouth receives 114 megawatts of coal-fired generation from the plant.

At full capacity, the plant can burn 24,000 tons of coal a day and can generate about 2.69 billion watts of electricity — enough to serve the needs of about 885,000 homes.

Unit 1 became operational in 1978, unit 2 in 1985, unit 3 in 1989 and unit 4 in 1991. Total generating capacity for the plant’s four units is 2,664 megawatts.

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