Southern Company

Last updated

The Southern Company
Company type Public
Industry Energy, Telecom
Founded1945;79 years ago (1945)
Headquarters,
U.S.
Area served
6 U.S. states: [1]
Key people
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$29.3 billion [3]  (2022)
Increase2.svgUS$3.52 billion (2022)
Increase2.svgUS$3.52 billion (2022)
Total assets Increase2.svgUS$134.9 billion (2022)
Total equity Increase2.svgUS$34.5 billion (2022)
Number of employees
27,700 (2022)
Subsidiaries Southern Company Gas
Alabama Power
Georgia Power
Mississippi Power
Southern Company Services
Southern Linc
Southern Nuclear
Southern Company Generation
Southern Power
Southern Telecom
PowerSecure
Website southerncompany.com
Footnotes /references
[4]

Southern Company is an American gas and electric utility holding company based in the southern United States. It is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with executive offices also located in Birmingham, Alabama. The company is the second largest utility company in the U.S. in terms of customer base, as of 2021. Through its subsidiaries it serves 9 million gas and electric utility customers in 6 states. Southern Company's regulated regional electric utilities serve a 120,000-square-mile (310,000 km2) territory with 27,000 miles (43,000 km) of distribution lines. [3]

Contents

Overview

Southern Company is one of the largest energy providers in the United States and is ranked 126th on the Fortune 500 listing of the largest U.S. corporations. [5] The company has approximately 31,300 employees. [5] It has more than 500,000 shareholders (NYSE: SO) and has been traded since September 30, 1949.

Southern Company subsidiaries are operating or developing renewable: solar, wind, and biomass facilities across the U.S., as well as the first new nuclear units in the U.S. in 30 years at Plant Vogtle near Augusta, Georgia.

Southern Company's three retail operating companies—Alabama Power, Georgia Power, and Mississippi Power—serve 120,000 square miles (310,000 km2) in three states. Southern Power serves wholesale electricity customers across the U.S. Southern Company Gas serves utility customers in seven states.

Southern Company owns the following companies:

Prior to 2019, Southern Company also owned Gulf Power, an electric utility based in Pensacola, Florida that serves most of the Florida Panhandle. An agreement was reached in May 2018 to sell Gulf Power to rival utility company NextEra Energy. The sale was completed on January 1, 2019. [6] Gulf Power would become the Northwest Florida division of Florida Power & Light (FPL) in 2021, with the Gulf Power name retired in favor of FPL in 2022.

History

Southern Company previous logo Southern Company logo.svg
Southern Company previous logo

Southern Company can be traced back to 1924, when Southeastern Power & Light was formed as a holding company for Alabama Traction, Light and Power (formed 1906), the immediate forerunner of Alabama Power. Later that year, it formed Mississippi Power as a subsidiary, with Gulf Power following in 1925. In 1926, it merged with Georgia Power (formed 1902). In 1930, Southeastern Power & Light merged into the Commonwealth & Southern Corporation. The new system included five Northern companies and six Southern companies. However, in the late 1940s Commonwealth & Southern was dissolved to meet the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935. Four of Commonwealth & Southern's Deep South operating companies—Alabama Power, Georgia Power, Gulf Power, and Mississippi Power—were deemed to be an integrated system and thus were allowed to remain under common ownership. A new holding company, Southern Company, was incorporated in Delaware on November 9, 1945. It commenced operation in 1949, and moved to Georgia in 1950. In 1954–55, the company was involved in the Dixon-Yates contract with the Atomic Energy Commission, and the associated political controversy. [7]

In 1981, Southern Company became the first electric utility holding company in 46 years to diversify its operations by forming an unregulated subsidiary. In January 1982, Southern Energy, Inc., began official operations as a global energy company, growing to serve 10 countries on four continents. On April 2, 2001, Southern Company completed the spinoff of Southern Energy as Mirant Corporation.

Another Southern Company subsidiary—Southern Nuclear—began providing services in 1991 to the system's nuclear power plants.

In 1996, Southern Communications Services began providing digital wireless communications services to Southern Company's subsidiaries and also began marketing these services to the public within the Southeast as Southern Linc. Southern Telecom, a telecommunications subsidiary of Southern Company, was founded in 1997. Southern Telecom provides colocation and dark fiber optic lines to network businesses. [8]

On January 9, 2001, Southern Company received final approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to form Southern Power, a subsidiary to own, manage and finance wholesale generating assets in the Southeast. The new subsidiary targets wholesale customers.

On July 19, 2002, Southern Company Gas received certification from the Georgia Public Service Commission to enter the retail gas market. After nearly four years of operations, the company was sold and customers transferred to Cobb EMC's newly formed affiliate, Gas South.

In 2011, Southern Company and Turner Renewable Energy purchased a 30 MW solar project from First Solar. [9] Located in Cimarron, New Mexico, it began generating electricity in 2011. [10]

In June 2012, the Nacogdoches Generating Facility began its commercial operation. [11] The facility is a 115 MW biomass-fueled electric generating plant, located near Sacul in Nacogdoches County, Texas.

In 2016, Southern Company acquired PowerSecure, a distributed energy infrastructure technologies company, and AGL Resources (which was renamed Southern Company Gas). As a result of the AGL Resources merger, Southern Company doubled its customer base, expanded its footprint and broadened the scope of its business by increasing its natural gas presence. [12]

In September 2023, it was announced Southern Company's subsidiary, Southern Power had acquired the 200MW Millers Branch Solar Facility in Haskell County, Texas from EDF Renewables North America, for an undisclosed amount. [13]

Plant Vogtle

Plant Vogtle in Georgia. Southern Company and its partners are constructing two new units on this site by 2022. Vogtle NPP.jpg
Plant Vogtle in Georgia. Southern Company and its partners are constructing two new units on this site by 2022.

Southern Company subsidiaries operate hydroelectric, gas, coal, and nuclear generation sources to generate approximately 200 terawatt-hours of electricity. In 2009, coal represented 57 percent of the company's output, followed by nuclear (23%) and natural gas (16%). Renewable hydroelectric power represented 4 percent of Southern's generation. Coal-based generation dropped significantly in 2009 from an average of 70% between 2005 and 2008. [14] As of 2017 Coal-based generation had dropped to 30%. [15]

In June 2010, the United States Department of Energy awarded an $8.3 billion loan guarantee to facilitate the construction of two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle, near Augusta, Georgia. A Southern Company subsidiary, Georgia Power, owns 45.7% of the current 2,430 MW facility, with co-owners Oglethorpe Power (30%) Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (22.7%) and the City of Dalton (1.6%). The plant is operated by Georgia Power. The $14 billion construction project is scheduled to be completed by 2022 and would double the plant's capacity. [16]

The construction of two 1,154 MW reactors has been hailed by Energy Secretary Steven Chu as "the first new nuclear power plant to break ground in decades". It is expected to create up to 3,500 jobs during the construction phase, and 800 once operational. [17] However, in March 2017 Westinghouse Electric Company, who were building the plant, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy because of $9 billion of losses from its two U.S. nuclear construction projects. [18] The U.S. government had given $8.3 billion of loan guarantees on the financing of the four nuclear reactors being built in the U.S., and it is expected a way forward to completing the plant can be agreed. [19]

Plant Ratcliffe

In September 2013 the EPA introduced new provisions regarding output of carbon emissions in new power facilities. The proposed emission limit for new energy sources will be 1,100lbs of carbon dioxide per megawatt hour of electricity. [20] Preemptively recognizing the need for these changes, Southern Company broke ground on its 21st-century clean coal facility in June 2010. [21] Southern's subsidiary, Mississippi Power will operate the plant. The Kemper County Energy Facility, or Kemper Project, takes advantage of the abundant lignite, or poor quality coal, available in Mississippi. [22] Additionally, it employs Transport Gasifier (TRIG) technology. TRIG technology is built on the idea of dry-feed, non-slag gasifiers, which operate at lower temperatures than other coal gasifiers. This dry-feed is crushed, heated, and circulated in the gasifier, producing a flammable synthetic gas, syngas. Syngas can generate electricity with fewer emissions. Of course, other byproducts are produced, like ammonia and sulphuric acid. These particular products are sold for commercial use. [23]

The EPA considers the Kemper Coal Project and other planned facilities like it, to be a lifeline for the coal industry in the wake of the new climate change plan. Between 2010 and 2014, approximately 150 coal plants were shut down. [24]

As of April 2014, the US Department of Energy had invested $270m in this project. Southern Company, and its subsidiary, Mississippi Power anticipate that the Kemper Coal Plant will generate enough energy to serve more than 187,000 customers. Upon opening, the Kemper Coal Project is expected to be capable of stripping out at least 65% of the carbon dioxide, significantly exceeding the EPA's proposed requirement of 40%. [25]

Partnerships

Southern Company works with the US Department of Energy on a variety of projects including transmission and distribution of infrastructure and smart grid initiatives, environmental research programs, and nuclear generation. One of the more significant joint efforts, the DOE's National Carbon Capture Center, is managed by Southern Company and represents national efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal-based power generation. At this location, Southern Company has been working with scientists and technology developers from government, industry, and universities who are creating the next generation of carbon capture technologies. [26]

Along with the DOE, Southern Company has been working with KBR, another technology partner, to perfect its TRIG advanced coal gasification technology. [27] This process of breaking down "dirty coal", or lignite, into its chemical components is not only cleaner, but it is also less expensive and more reliable. [28] This technology is currently being implemented at Southern Company's Kemper County power plant, one of the few new coal facilities working to keep the US coal industry alive. This new facility will be built on a lignite seam, is expected to strip out two-thirds of carbon dioxide emissions, leaving emissions at about the same level as natural gas. The Kemper Coal Plant is expected to fall well under new regulations implemented by the EPA, which limits coal plants to 1,100lbs of carbon dioxide emissions per megawatt hour of electricity. [24]

In an effort to make this technology more attainable, Southern Company has partnered with China's Shenhua Group to collaborate on further research, development, and deployment of clean coal technologies in the US, China, and around the world. [29] This partnership with Shenhua, who is currently expected to add more than 400,000 megawatts of coal-fired capacity by 2035, could lead to wide deployment of TRIG-equipped power plants across Asia. TRIG technology has the potential to not only assist China with their growing carbon issue, but also enable the country to tap into their own low quality coal. [30]

In 2009, the U.S. Department of Energy granted Southern Company a $165 million Smart Grid Investment Grant to implement a smart grid and to make the grid more reliable. Through matching funds and other investments, the company spent $363 million on the initiative, which it completed in 2014. The upgraded smart grid allows Southern Company the ability to monitor and control its electric infrastructure in real time and respond to problems. [31]

Financial data

Financial data in $ millions [32]
Year200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022
Revenue 13,55414,35615,35317,12715,74317,45617,65716,53717,08718,46717,48919,89623,03123,49521,41920,37523,11329,279
Net income 1,5911,5731,7341,7421,6431,9752,2032,3501,6441,9632,3672,4488422,2264,7393,1192,3933,524
Assets 39,87742,85845,78948,34752,04655,03259,26763,14964,54670,23378,318109,697111,005116,914118,700122,935127,534134,891
Employees26,30026,36926,70332,01531,34429,19227,94327,70027,30027,700

Carbon footprint

Southern Company reported Total CO2e emissions (Direct + Indirect) for the twelve months ending 31 December 2020 at 75,300 Kt (-13,100 /-14.8% y-o-y) [33] and aims to reach net zero emissions by 2050. [34]

Southern Company's annual Total CO2e Emissions - Market-Based Scope 1 + Scope 2 (in kilotonnes) [33]
Dec 2017Dec 2018Dec 2019Dec 2020
101,200102,60088,40075,300

Political donations

In May 2018, it was reported that Southern Company had donated $1 million to America First Policies, a pro-Donald Trump advocacy group. [35] [36] [37]

Controversies

Environmental impact

Southern Company is the third-largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, emitting 86,244,286 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2019. [38] [39]

In 2005, the company announced it would open a Mercury Research Center at Plant Crist Pensacola, Florida, [40] hoping to find new ways to reduce mercury emissions. [41]

On April 25, 2006, Alabama Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company, agreed to pay $200M to settle allegations that its coal-fired James H. Miller, Jr. Plant near West Jefferson, Alabama emitted harmful amounts of SO2 and NOx. [42]

In response to growing public and financial community interest, the company has enacted assorted environmental measures. Southern Company participates in Renew Our Rivers, a volunteer program to remove debris from rivers and other waterways throughout the Southeast, which claims [43] over 11 million pounds of trash removed or recycled in Renew Our Rivers events.[ citation needed ] The company also manages and operates the National Carbon Capture Center, a focal point of the US Department of Energy's efforts to develop carbon capture and greenhouse gas reduction technologies, [44] under which various projects to test geologic sequestration are in progress at Plant Gorgas in Alabama, Plant Daniel in Mississippi and other company sites. However, critics have argued that CCS seldom works and prolongs the life of fossil fuels. [45] [46]

Climate change denial

Southern Company has a long history of funding climate change denial [38] and has been a "driving force behind climate disinformation", sponsoring campaigns in opposition to climate science, against limiting greenhouse gas emissions, and slowing the transition to renewable energy sources. [47]

Between 1993 and 2004 Southern Company paid over $62 million to organizations that spread disinformation about climate change. [38] The utility paid for advertising claiming that climate change was not real and made payments to public relations companies, industry groups, law firms and thinktanks to dispute the scientific consensus for climate change and attack legislative solutions. The utility paid $20 million to the trade group Edison Electric Institute, which creates media campaigns to attack proponents of global warming. [38] In the 1990s, Southern Company and the Center for Energy and Economic Development hosted energy workshops broadcast to schoolteachers through the company's satellite network to promote pro-coal messages about climate change and the environment. [38]

Kemper Project controversies

In February 2015, the Mississippi Supreme Court ordered Southern Company's subsidiary Mississippi Power to restore $377 million to South Mississippi ratepayers for rate increases related to the Kemper Project, a "clean" coal plant. [48] These fees were derived from Mississippi's Baseload Act, allowing Mississippi Power to charge ratepayers for powerplants under construction.

In May 2016, Southern Company and its subsidiary Mississippi Power announced they were being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission related to overruns at the Kemper Project. [48] The project had been repeatedly delayed and costs increased from $2.88 billion to $6.58 billion. [49] In recorded conversations, at least six engineers from the Kemper Project claimed that delays, cost overruns, safety violations, and shoddy work, were in part due to mismanagement or fraud.

In June 2016, Mississippi Power was sued by Treetop Midstream Services over the cancellation of a contract to receive carbon dioxide from the Kemper Project as part of the carbon capture and storage design. [50] Treetop had contracted to buy carbon dioxide from the Kemper plant and had built a pipeline in preparation to receive the gas. Treetop alleged Mississippi Power had fraudulently and "intentionally misrepresenting and concealing the start date" for the Kemper Project, though Mississippi Power stated the suit was without merit.

The company was also found to have unlawfully fired a whistle-blower who had criticized alleged false statements by company management. [48]

Vogtle nuclear power plant

In June 2021, Georgia Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company, was scrutinized by the Georgia Public Service Commission over the lengthy delays and ballooning costs of its new Vogtle nuclear plant in Burke County, Georgia. [51] [52]

Willie Soon

In February 2015, it was revealed that climate change denier Willie Soon had been paid by Southern Company and several other fossil fuel interest groups. [53] Over the course of 14 years, Soon received a total of $1.25m from Southern Company, Exxon Mobil, the American Petroleum Institute (API) and a foundation run by the Koch brothers, the documents obtained by Greenpeace show. [54] At $410,000, Southern Company was the largest donor. The scientist described his studies to fossil fuel executives as "deliverables", and permitted anonymous pre-publication reviews. [55] Soon advanced the widely discredited theory that changes in solar activity are to blame for climate change, and called into question the severity and extent of climate change in all his studies, never revealing his backers. [55]

See also

Notes

  1. Southern Company. "Service Territory" . Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  2. "Southern Company employees list" (PDF). Craft. September 4, 2019.
  3. 1 2 Southern Company. "Facts and Figures" . Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  4. "Southern Share Holder Equity 2010-2023". www.macrotrends.net. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Southern". Fortune. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  6. "NextEra Energy completes acquisition of Gulf Power from Southern Company". NextEra Energy. September 4, 2019.
  7. "The Southern Company History". Funding Universe. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  8. "About Us". Southern Company. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  9. "First Solar Sells 30 Megawatt Solar Photovoltaic Power Project to Southern Company and Turner Renewable Energy". investor.firstsolar.com. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  10. Company, Southern. "Southern Company and Ted Turner Energize Cimarron Solar Facility". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  11. https://www.southerncompany.com/content/dam/southern-company/pdf/southernpower/Nacogdoches_Generating_Facility_factsheet.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  12. "Southern Company unveils new brand". www.southerncompany.com. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  13. Casey, J. P. (September 22, 2023). "Southern Power acquires 200MW Millers Branch solar project in Texas". PV Tech. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  14. Southern Company (2010). "Corporate Responsibility Report Data Summary". Archived from the original on September 12, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  15. "Southern Company 2017 Annual Report" (PDF).
  16. Markiewicz, David (February 10, 2010). "Vogtle nuclear plant near Augusta gets federal loan guarantee". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Archived from the original on June 9, 2010. Retrieved August 8, 2010.
  17. Pavey, Rob (February 16, 2010). "Feds back two new reactors at Plant Vogtle". Augusta Chronicle. Augusta, GA. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  18. Fuse, Taro (March 24, 2017). "Toshiba decides on Westinghouse bankruptcy, sees $9 billion in charges: sources". Reuters. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  19. Tom Hals, Makiko Yamazaki, Tim Kelly (March 30, 2017). "Huge nuclear cost overruns push Toshiba's Westinghouse into bankruptcy". Reuters. Retrieved March 31, 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  20. "Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units". Federal Register. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  21. "Kemper County IGCC Fact Sheet: Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage Project". MIT. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  22. "Kemper FAQ". NBCC. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  23. "Mississippi Plant to Test if Coal Can Be Clean". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  24. 1 2 "Can Kemper become the first US power plant to use 'clean coal'?". The Guardian. March 12, 2014. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  25. "In Mississippi, a power plant is designed to shape the future of coal". LA Times. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  26. "Southern Company & Department of Energy Partnerships". Southern Company. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  27. "What is TRIG?". NBCC. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  28. "Gasification and TRIG". Mississippi Power. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  29. "Southern Teaming with Shenhua Group on Clean Coal Technology". NBCC. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  30. "Southern teaming with Shenhua group on clean coal technology". The Energy Daily. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
  31. "Southern Company Enhances Grid Reliability, Efficiency, Security Through $165 Million DOE Grant". Transmission & Distribution World. January 13, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  32. "Southern Revenue 2006-2018 | SO". www.macrotrends.net. Retrieved November 6, 2018.
  33. 1 2 "Southern Company's Sustainability Report for 2020Q4" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 12, 2021. Alt URL
  34. "Net Zero - Southern Company".
  35. "Corporate donors funding Trump dark money group tied to racist views". May 31, 2018.
  36. "Southern Co., CVS, Dow Chemical Funding Trump Dark Money Group Tied to Racist, Anti-Semitic Views". maplight.org. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  37. Andrew Kaczynski; Chris Massie; Nathan McDermott. "CVS Health and Dow Chemical will no longer donate to pro-Trump advocacy group". CNN. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  38. 1 2 3 4 5 Dembicki, Geoff (June 8, 2022). "Warned of 'massive' climate-led extinction, a US energy firm funded crisis denial ads". The Guardian.
  39. Baylor, Matthew (2021). "Greenhouse 100 Polluters Index: (2021 Report, Based on 2019 Data)". Political Economy Research Institute.
  40. https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2005/12/05/daily7.html [ bare URL ]
  41. "Mercury Research Center (pdf)" (PDF). mercuryresearchcenter.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 26, 2012. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  42. "#06-242: 04-25-06 Partial Settlement with Alabama Power will Result in Significant Reductions of Harmful Pollutants". www.justice.gov. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  43. "Renew Our Rivers website". renewourrivers.com. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  44. "Error". www.netl.doe.gov. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  45. "Congress is spending billions on carbon capture. Is it a climate savior or a boondoggle?". www.cbsnews.com. January 25, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  46. "Southern Company's Kemper Scandal and Why Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Will Never Work". Energy and Policy Institute. July 12, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  47. Anderson, David (June 2022). "Southern Company Knew: How a "clean coal" utility was warned about climate change risks years before it funded climate disinformation, 1964-2022". Energy and Policy Institute.
  48. 1 2 3 Urbina, Ian (July 5, 2016). "Piles of Dirty Secrets Behind a Model 'Clean Coal' Project". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  49. "Mississippi Power: SEC investigating Kemper project". Clarion-Ledger. Gannett Company. Associated Press. May 6, 2016. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  50. Chandler, Clay. "Court strikes down Kemper rate increases, orders refunds". The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  51. Recorder, Stanley Dunlap/Georgia (June 25, 2021). "PSC, federal inspectors grill Georgia Power, Southern Company over Vogtle delays". The Current. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  52. "$30B Georgia Power nuclear plant delayed up to 6 more months". AP NEWS. February 17, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  53. Gillis, Justin; Schwartz, John (February 21, 2015). "Deeper Ties to Corporate Cash for Doubtful Climate Researcher". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  54. "Work of prominent climate change denier was funded by energy industry". The Guardian. February 21, 2015. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  55. 1 2 Hasemyer, David (February 21, 2015). "Documents Reveal Fossil Fuel Fingerprints on Contrarian Climate Research". Inside Climate News. Retrieved March 13, 2022.

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Between 2007 and 2009, 13 companies applied to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for construction and operating licenses to build 31 new nuclear power reactors in the United States. However, the case for widespread nuclear plant construction has been hampered due to inexpensive natural gas, slow electricity demand growth in a weak US economy, lack of financing, and safety concerns following the Fukushima nuclear accident at a plant built in the early 1970s which occurred in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kemper Project</span> Power station in Mississippi, US

The Kemper Project, also called the Kemper County energy facility or Plant Ratcliffe, is a natural gas-fired electrical generating station currently under construction in Kemper County, Mississippi. Mississippi Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company, began construction of the plant in 2010. The initial, coal-fired project was central to President Obama's Climate Plan, as it was to be based on "clean coal" and was being considered for more support from the Congress and the incoming Trump Administration in late 2016. If it had become operational with coal, the Kemper Project would have been a first-of-its-kind electricity plant to employ gasification and carbon capture technologies at this scale.

Coal gasification is a process whereby a hydrocarbon feedstock (coal) is converted into gaseous components by applying heat under pressure in the presence of steam. Rather than burning, most of the carbon-containing feedstock is broken apart by chemical reactions that produce "syngas." Syngas is primarily hydrogen and carbon monoxide, but the exact composition can vary. In Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) systems, the syngas is cleaned and burned as fuel in a combustion turbine which then drives an electric generator. Exhaust heat from the combustion turbine is recovered and used to create steam for a steam turbine-generator. The use of these two types of turbines in combination is one reason why gasification-based power systems can achieve high power generation efficiencies. Currently, commercially available gasification-based systems can operate at around 40% efficiencies. Syngas, however, emits more greenhouse gases than natural gas, and almost twice as much carbon as a coal plant. Coal gasification is also water-intensive.