Changes in the regulation of Ohio investor-owned utilities over the past several years have led AEP to close or sell many of its generating plants. Investor-owned utility customers now rely primarily on electricity purchased from the wholesale market rather than having it produced by their local utility. Ohio’s electric cooperatives have seen the benefit of stable prices that has come from owning and operating competitive and efficient power plants such as Cardinal. The longtime partners agreed, therefore, that a change in roles would be appropriate. So while AEP still owns Unit 1 at the plant, Buckeye Power officially took operational charge of all three units in March of this year, after two years of negotiation and preparation. The 320 staff members there became employees of the Cardinal Operating Company, now directed by Buckeye Power management. In addition, Buckeye Power now operates both the Robert P. Mone Plant in Convoy and the Greenville Generating Station in Darke County — both naturalgas-fueled plants that produce during times of higher energy demand.
“We’re excited for the opportunity this transition has given us,” O’Loughlin says. “While our consumermembers should not see any difference, we’ll be working to identify opportunities for cost savings and improvements in the daily operation of the plant that will keep the Cardinal plant competitive for years to come.” Operating the plant also lets the co-ops have greater say in ensuring that the power provided by their power company remains safe, clean, affordable, and reliable. Co-ops have invested more than $1 billion in the last decade on environmental safeguards at Cardinal and have a vested interest in keeping it running at its best.
Cardinal Power Plant quick facts Location: Along the Ohio River, south of Brilliant, Ohio
Capacity: 1,800 MW total Stack height (Units 1 and 2): 1,000 feet Unit 3 cooling tower capacity: 16.8 million gallons of water per hour
Average annual coal use: 5.2 million tons Average daily coal use: 15,800 tons Coal yard storage capacity: 1.3 million tons
OCTOBER 2018 • OHIO COOPERATIVE LIVING 5