Mississippi Power
Energy Independence for Mississippi
Kemper County IGCC Project

We often tell our kids, "Never put all your eggs in one basket." Although this simple little phrase helps us communicate valuable lessons as parents, we can also apply the logic to the way we do business. Mississippi is uniquely positioned to become the model for energy independence, and Mississippi Power's Kemper County IGCC supports that critically important goal by adding an additional source to its fuel mix – lignite.

Lignite
The United States has more coal than any other fuel—more, in fact, than the rest of the world combined has oil. A quarter of all the known coal in the entire world is here in the U.S. Large coal deposits can be found in 38 states, including Mississippi.

Kemper County, Mississippi, has huge lignite coal reserves that remain largely untapped. At Mississippi Power, we are working to diversify our fuel mix by adding Mississippi lignite to our current mix of natural gas and coal.

The local lignite will provide decades of low-cost fuel and avoid huge price swings associated with uncontrollable fuel markets. It is the lower cost fuel available – and with a 4 billion ton reserve in Mississippi – we Mississippi Power can secure a stable fuel source while reducing our dependence on foreign fuel for future generations, due to its abundance and affordability.

Natural gas
Mississippi Power already has about 33 percent of its current generation fleet using natural gas. Having a portion of this fuel source in the mix allows the company to take advantage of the occasional low cost swings of natural gas. However, being too dependent on any one source, particularly one with such historical price spikes, leaves customers vulnerable to high bills directly associated with fuel costs. The low cost of lignite will provide customers that extra security as this fuel source has very little cost increase over the 40-year life of the Kemper County IGCC plant.

Traditional coal
Traditional coal typically is a less volatile-priced fuel source than others. Rising transportation costs (rail and shipping) tied to the cost of diesel have also increased the historically low cost of using coal. The proposed Kemper County project provides additional cost stability and savings by tapping Mississippi’s 4 billion ton reserve of low-costing lignite and using a mine-to-mouth operation to avoid transportation costs.

Energy independence
Few states can boast of a more robust and diverse supply of energy resources and energy-related infrastructure than Mississippi. Those resources include:

  • Major oil refineries and pipelines
  • Power plants fired by coal, nuclear and natural gas
  • Ethanol
  • Liquefied natural gas
  • Coal-to-liquids
  • Bio-diesel
  • Tertiary oil recovery

And now, with the Kemper County IGCC plant, there’s Mississippi lignite.

Kemper County IGCC Project

Energy Independence for Mississippi