Defense Production Act Title III Project Selections: Coal Fleet Projects and West Gateway Terminal
Coal Fleet Projects
Project RECLAIM-C Reliable, Economical, and Local Advancement in Modernized Coal — Wisconsin Power and Light Company, dba Alliant Energy (Pacific, Wisconsin)
Columbia Energy Center (CEC) is a two-unit 1,112 MW coal plant and cornerstone of the local economy, contributing approximately $2.1 million annually to Columbia County and $750,000 to the Town of Pacific in shared revenue payments. This project provides an opportunity to modernize existing American energy infrastructure so it can deliver affordable, reliable power while preserving high-wage employment and strengthening economic resilience in rural Wisconsin. Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL)/Alliant Energy (AE) look forward to working with DOE to advance this important investment in the community and region.
Continued operations will sustain the work of nearly 100 high-skill union workers at the plant, represented by IBEW Local 965. In addition, more skilled trade employment opportunities are expected to be generated during construction – jobs that are vital to the rural town of Pacific community of approximately 2,800 residents.
The modernization of CEC will be carried out using a structured, staged approach that allows continuous plant operation and efficient use of scheduled outages. This framework exemplifies America’s capability to design, engineer, and construct critical energy infrastructure using U.S.-made equipment and U.S. labor. By relying primarily on domestic manufacturing and union craft labor, the project reinforces the Administration’s commitment to ensuring that energy investments create American jobs and strengthen domestic supply chains.
This project directly supports the national objective of strengthening American energy dominance by modernizing existing domestic baseload generation assets. By investing in reliable infrastructure on U.S. soil, WPL/AE reinforces America’s capacity to deliver affordable, secure, and resilient power from within its own borders, reducing dependence on foreign energy sources and critical supply chains.
Federal Funding: $19,000,000
Non-Federal Funding: $29,500,000
Total Value: $48,500,000
Steam Turbine 3 Modernization Project — Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (Cochise, Arizona)
Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (AEPCO) will execute the Steam Turbine 3 Modernization Project—a comprehensive restoration initiative—at its Apache Generating Station in rural Cochise County, Arizona. Established in 1961 to serve rural electric cooperatives across the Southwest, AEPCO will undertake routine updates and replacements on Steam Turbine 3 (ST3), a 195 MW subcritical coal-fired unit. This project will restore the mechanical and electrical integrity of this critical baseload asset, ensuring it can continue to provide dependable, cost-effective, and dispatchable power to rural Southwestern communities facing rising peak demand and regional grid reliability concerns.
The project will increase ST3 performance and efficiency, and improve the unit's operational availability while reducing forced outage rates and decreasing long-term maintenance costs to protect rural consumers from market volatility. Beyond grid reliability benefits, the project represents a vital economic stabilizer for Cochise County, where AEPCO supports 241 regional jobs and $95.5 million in annual economic output. The project will preserve high-wage skilled union labor, supporting approximately 52 FTEs of contractor resources during the first phase of the project, and another 25 FTEs during the second phase.
Federal Funding: $20,826,000
Non-Federal Funding: $39,724,284
Total Value: $60,550,284
Antelope Valley Station Coal Modernization Opportunity —Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Mercer County, North Dakota)
Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Basin Electric) plans to upgrade critical equipment and infrastructure at Antelope Valley Station (AVS), providing improved reliability and greater efficiency. These improvements will help ensure the power plant continues to provide dependable, low-cost baseload power for its members.
Located in Mercer County, North Dakota, AVS plays an important role in the local economy and regional energy system. It is a lignite coal-based power plant composed of two units designed to deliver consistent, dispatchable electricity.
Recent regional analyses have identified growing reliability challenges and increasing demand for electricity. This underscores the importance of maintaining and strengthening existing generation resources.
To support continued long-term operation, Basin Electric is considering several key upgrades to the turbine and balance of plant electrical components. These upgrades are expected to improve performance, reduce unplanned outages, and enhance overall efficiency, supporting reliable power generation for years to come.
Federal Funding: $27,441,000
Non-Federal Funding: $42,559,000
Total Value: $70,000,000
East Bend Coal Reliability Assurance Initiative — Duke Energy Kentucky (Boone County, Kentucky)
The project supports reliability improvements at Duke Energy’s coal unit in Rabbit Hash, Kentucky. These upgrades will enable more efficient operations and greater flexibility to meet demand, strengthening electric service in a rural and constrained region. The initiative includes two key projects to improve the steam turbine and boiler economizer, reducing operational risk and enhancing overall plant performance. East Bend, which provides approximately 600 megawatts of capacity, plays a vital role in supporting local communities and maintaining reliability across the broader Duke Energy Kentucky system. By improving the performance of the East Bend unit, the project is expected to help support long-term energy affordability. The initiative will also preserve high-quality local jobs while ensuring the continued availability of reliable, secure generation resources in underserved areas.
Federal Funding: $33,400,000
Non-Federal Funding: $50,043,088
Total Value: $83,443,088
Roxboro 2 & 3 Coal Reliability Assurance Initiative — Duke Energy Progress, Inc. (Cunningham Township, North Carolina)
The Roxboro Station Reliability Assurance Initiative supports reliability improvements at Duke Energy’s coal unit in Person County, North Carolina. These upgrades will enable more efficient operations and greater flexibility to meet demand, strengthening electric service in a rural and constrained region.
The initiative includes more than 60 targeted projects to modernize key boiler, scrubber, electrical, and balance-of-plant systems, reducing operational risk and enhancing overall plant performance. Roxboro Units 2 and 3, which provide approximately 1,370 megawatts of capacity, play a vital role in supporting local communities and maintaining reliability across the broader Duke Energy Progress system.
By improving the performance of these units, the project is expected to help support long-term energy affordability. The initiative will also preserve high-quality local jobs while ensuring the continued availability of reliable, secure generation resources in underserved areas.
Federal Funding: $28,400,000
Non-Federal Funding: $44,273,513
Total Value: $72,673,513
EKPC Coal Recommissioning and Modernization Project — East Kentucky Power Cooperative, Inc. (Maysville and Burnside, Kentucky)
This project will support modernization of coal-fired units at the H.L. Spurlock and John Sherman Cooper Generating Stations located in Maysville and Burnside, Kentucky to provide near-term resource adequacy and grid-reliability benefits to the PJM Interconnection L.L.C. region. Spurlock Station is a four-unit, 1,340 MW coal-fired generation facility and Cooper Station is a two-unit, 344 MW coal-fired generation facility, both owned and operated by East Kentucky Power Cooperative, Inc. (EKPC). EKPC has a strong track record of safe, affordable, and reliable operation as a member-owned cooperative serving more than 570,000 homes, farms, and businesses across 89 Kentucky counties since 1941.
The project will support retrofitting existing Babcock & Wilcox and Alstom/GE designed plant equipment with dual-fuel co-firing capabilities, critical asset maintenance, and repairs necessary to ensure continued safe, reliable, and efficient operations. Upon entering dual-fuel operations, the facilities will utilize domestically sourced natural gas and coal to enable flexible co-firing with up to fifty percent natural gas by heat input at Spurlock Station and up to one hundred percent at Cooper Station.
Modernization and life extension of the facilities will directly preserve approximately 310 high-wage, full-time operations and maintenance jobs—including 250 skilled positions at Spurlock Station and nearly 60 positions at Cooper Station—and indirectly support thousands of additional jobs across Kentucky and neighboring states, including in the construction, logistics, and domestic manufacturing industries.
Federal Funding: $90,600,000
Non-Federal Funding: $271,800,000
Total value: $362,400,000
Project M.O.R.E. (Modernizing Oklahoma’s Rural Energy) — Grand River Dam Authority (Chouteau, Oklahoma)
The Grand River Dam Authority (GRDA), a non-appropriated agency of the State of Oklahoma, is advancing Project M.O.R.E., a comprehensive initiative to extend the operational life of Unit 2 at the Grand River Energy Center in Chouteau, Oklahoma. The project is designed to strengthen grid reliability, improve operational resilience, and ensure continued delivery of affordable electricity to Oklahoma communities.
GRDA’s Unit 2 is a 520 MW coal-fired generating unit, commissioned in 1986, providing dispatchable capacity within the Southwest Power Pool (SPP) market and serving as a key resource for meeting regional demand, maintaining fuel diversity and supporting system reliability, particularly during extreme weather events.
The planned improvements include targeted capital investments across major systems, including coal yard and material handling infrastructure modernization (enhancing reliability, safety, and fire protection systems), water and air delivery system upgrades (improving efficiency and operational resilience), turbine control system and monitoring enhancements (supporting predictive maintenance and improved system performance), and high pressure boiler improvements (ensuring efficient and safe operation).
Extending the life of Unit 2 represents the most cost-effective solution compared to new-build generation alternatives, while leveraging existing infrastructure to deliver affordable and reliable power to GRDA’s customers.
As electricity demand continues to grow and reserve margins tighten across the region, the extension of Unit 2 will provide a critical reliability bridge, ensuring continued grid stability and energy security for rural and municipal customers.
Federal Funding: $28,518,000
Non-Federal Funding: $48,061,000
Total Value: $76,579,000
Modernizing the Merom Coal-Fired Power Station: Effluent Limitation Guideline Modernization Project — Hallador Power Company (Sullivan County, Indiana)
Hallador Power Company, LLC’s Merom Station ELG Modernization Project will modernize the water-management systems at Hallador Power Company’s 1,080-MW Merom Generating Station in Sullivan County, Indiana. The project deploys proven technologies—conversion of plant pumps to mechanical seals that sharply reduce water use, advanced water reuse and storage, and Class I deep well injection—to treat, reuse, and safely dispose of process water, to position the plant to meet future federal Effluent Limitation Guidelines requirements and achieve zero liquid discharge. By supporting this key baseload asset’s continued long-term operation, it supports 171 full-time jobs, sustains the local tax base, protects local water resources, and delivers reliable, affordable power for customers across southern Indiana and the MISO grid.
The planned key upgrades include: process optimization and water reduction—converting flue gas desulfurization and bottom-ash pumps to mechanical seals to eliminate seal-water addition and achieve major water savings, along with upgraded wash sequences and controls to improve system water balances; water management and reuse—a large surge tank for temporary storage, retrofits to transfer bottom-ash water for internal reuse, and real-time monitoring for precise control; and deep well injection—a Class I non-hazardous injection well, with pretreatment to prevent scaling, for secure long-term disposal of residual water.
Federal Funding: $27,200,000
Non-Federal Funding: $42,491,006
Total Value: $69,691,006
Sooner Distributed Control System Modernization Project — Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company (Red Rock, Oklahoma)
The Sooner Distributed Control System (DCS) Modernization Project enables the modernization of Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company’s (OG&E) coal-fired Sooner Power Station (Sooner), located in the rural town of Red Rock, Oklahoma. Sooner provides 1.137 gigawatts (GW) of baseload generation from two units commissioned in 1979 and 1980. These units are essential to ensuring OG&E’s ability to meet regional reliability and capacity needs; however, the legacy DCS system and field devices at Sooner have become obsolete. Aging equipment is causing constant operational challenges, inefficiencies, and high risks of outages at Sooner. Maintaining the status quo creates a high risk of outages that increase costs for customers, reduce power reliability in the Southwest Power Pool (SPP), and could lead to the units needing to be retired prematurely.
Sooner is currently controlled by a variety of aged and obsolete equipment from multiple manufacturers, all with unique management requirements. The existing DCS, ABB’s 800xA platform, was originally installed in 2005. Select equipment upgrades have been completed incrementally; however, critical system components remain from the plant's initial commissioning. Aging equipment is no longer manufactured, forcing operators to procure equipment from secondary markets (e.g., eBay) when a repair is required. Continued reliance on these outdated systems increases the risk of equipment failure and extended outages due to an inability to quickly repair a failure.
The project will replace the existing obsolete ABB DCS with the Emerson Ovation DCS, integrating Sooner into OG&E’s centralized DCS architecture. The Project will also modernize critical field devices, replacing aging mechanical equipment with single points of failure to electronic devices with built in redundancy and diagnostic visibility. As part of the upgrade, servers, human-machine interfaces, network switches, controllers, and input/output modules will also be replaced.
Historic load growth across OG&E’s service territory makes the project need even more critical. Recent years have seen unprecedented requests for new electric service, some in the hundreds or even thousands of megawatts (MW), driven by large-scale economic development. Rapid expansion of large loads (e.g., data centers, manufacturing, refining) has transformed the region’s load profile.
In its 2025 Integrated Resource Plan, OG&E forecasts summer peak demand increasing from approximately 6,200 MW in 2026 to over 7,100 MW by 2030, necessitating more than 1,000 MW of new capacity additions. Maintaining reliable, dispatchable baseload generation is essential to support this growth and to balance intermittent renewable resources.
The key benefits of the project can be summarized into 3 categories: 1) grid reliability, 2) energy security and national interests, and 3) affordability and rural community development.
Grid Reliability: The project strengthens grid reliability by replacing Sooner’s obsolete and failure-prone systems with modern, fully supported digital controls. Upgrades such as redundant radar sensors, electronic level controllers, and heat-resistant wiring eliminate single points of failure and reduce outage durations from weeks or months to only hours. Modernized systems also restore cybersecurity protection, improve alarm accuracy, and provide operators real-time visibility into plant performance. These enhancements enable Sooner to start up more efficiently, respond faster to grid conditions, and deliver dependable generation needed to support growing system demand.
Energy Security and National Interests: Reliable electricity supply is foundational for U.S. competitiveness in manufacturing, technology, and defense sectors locating operations in OG&E’s service territory and SPP. By ensuring continued availability of over 1 GW of baseload capacity at Sooner, the Project safeguards grid reliability amid record load growth. The Project continues to ensure robust cybersecurity at Sooner, protecting against potential malicious threats to U.S. critical infrastructure.
Affordability and Rural Economic Development: The Project will reduce maintenance costs and prevent expensive outages, reducing ratepayer impacts while ensuring efficient operation. Beyond cost savings, the Project also creates hands-on learning opportunities with cutting-edge control systems to support the next generation of local coal sector workforce talent.
In conclusion, the project is a cost-effective investment that directly supports the reliability, affordability, and energy-security goals the U.S. electric grid. DOE’s support of this endeavor would exemplify the type of collaborative federal-utility investment necessary to maintain grid reliability and long-term U.S. competitiveness. To reduce ratepayer impacts, OG&E proposes a 50% cost-share agreement with the Department of Energy to execute the project between 2026–2028. This will result in $22,513,000 in federal funding with $35,212,674 in cost-share provided by OG&E.
Federal Funding: $22,513,000
Non-Federal Funding: $35,212,674
Total Value: $57,725,674
Flint Creek Coal Plant Modernization and Resiliency Program — Southwestern Electric Power Company (Gentry, Arkansas)
Southwestern Electric Power Company, a subsidiary of American Electric Power, is advancing a major modernization and resiliency program at the Flint Creek Power Plant in Gentry, Arkansas. The multi-year investment will enhance the performance, reliability, and longevity of one of the region’s most critical energy facilities, which serves more than 500,000 customers across Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas.
The approximately 39-month project includes a series of targeted upgrades designed to improve efficiency, increase generation capacity, and strengthen grid reliability. Key improvements include advanced turbine enhancements expected to increase output by up to 18 megawatts, upgrades to fuel processing systems to optimize performance, replacement of critical boiler components to extend plant life, and modernization of electrical infrastructure to meet current safety and operational standards.
With a total investment of more than $74 million, the program represents a strategic effort to maintain reliable, cost-effective energy while supporting local jobs and economic stability in northwest Arkansas. The upgrades are also expected to improve fuel efficiency, reduce operational risks, and position the facility to better support growing regional energy demand and grid resilience.
Overall, the Flint Creek modernization program reinforces AEP’s commitment to delivering dependable, affordable power while investing in existing infrastructure to support long-term energy reliability and community sustainability.
Federal Funding: $29,814,400
Non-Federal Funding: $44,721,600
Total Value: $74,536,000
Coal Revitalization Initiative — Tennessee Valley Authority (Stewart County, Tennessee)
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Coal Revitalization Initiative is a portfolio of critical projects at the two-unit Cumberland Fossil Plant (CUF) in Stewart County, TN, that will help sustain reliable, affordable, dispatchable baseload capability amid load growth and tightening seasonal margins across the Tennessee Valley. CUF is TVA’s largest coal-fired generating asset and the 11th-largest coal plant in the US, generating around 16 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year – enough to supply more than 1.4 million homes. CUF is directly tied into TVA’s high-voltage transmission system that serves more than 10 million people across seven states, making it a high-leverage site for near-term reliability and affordability outcomes.
TVA’s planning demonstrates the need for capacity as power demand grows. Since 2000, TVA has delivered 99.999 percent service reliability to its customers at residential rates lower than 80% of the top 100 largest US utilities (and at industrial rates lower than 90% of the top 100 US utilities). The projects include upgrades to the turbine and generator, boiler system, and scrubber module. Key activities include replacing worn turbine blades, conducting high-pressure turbine inspections, replacing corroded boiler tubes with advanced erosion-resistant materials, and rebuilding a fire-damaged scrubber module. The proposed upgrades could recover up to 200 MW in performance, reduce forced outages, and improve heat rate using proven, commercially deployed technologies. These investments will strengthen near-term affordability, reliability and rural grid resilience.
Federal Funding: $46,287,600
Non-Federal Funding: $69,431,400
Total Value: $115,719,000
Mitchell Mechanical Draft Cooling Tower Modernization Project — Wheeling Power Company (Moundsville, WV)
Wheeling Power Company, in partnership with Kentucky Power Company and Appalachian Power Company—all subsidiaries of American Electric Power—is advancing a major modernization project at the Mitchell Power Plant in Moundsville, West Virginia. The initiative focuses on replacing aging infrastructure with a state-of-the-art mechanical draft cooling tower to support long-term reliability and performance at the facility.
The new cooling tower will replace the plant’s nearly 60-year-old natural draft structure, helping preserve the Mitchell Plant’s full generation capacity of approximately 1,600 megawatts while reducing the risk of significant outages. Without this upgrade, as much as 800 megawatts of capacity could be at risk due to the limitations of the existing system.
The project represents an investment of approximately $162 million and will be executed through a multi-phase approach, including engineering and design, procurement and permitting, construction, and final testing. Construction is expected to support 50 to 75 jobs, contributing to local economic stability while ensuring the plant continues to provide reliable, affordable energy to approximately 1.25 million customers across the region.
Once completed, the modern cooling tower—designed with a lifespan of more than 25 years—will enhance plant efficiency, reduce maintenance needs, and improve environmental performance by minimizing water usage and thermal discharge. Overall, the project reinforces AEP’s commitment to strengthening grid reliability, supporting local communities, and investing in critical infrastructure to meet future energy demands.
Federal Funding: $51,000,000
Non-Federal Funding: $107,600,000
Total Value: $158,600,000
West Gateway Terminal Project
The West Gateway Project, spearheaded by Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal (OBOT) LLC, is a strategically located bulk commodities export terminal in Oakland, California. It offers direct access to the Pacific Ocean and Indo-Pacific markets, forming a crucial part of a broader, multi-decade initiative to revitalize and reindustrialize the Oakland Army Base (OAB) property within the Port of Oakland, which was decommissioned in the late 1990s. OBOT LLC holds exclusive development rights for the property through an established ground lease with the City of Oakland.
Situated on the West Gateway portion of the former OAB site, the project benefits from a 50-foot-deep harbor channel, capable of loading and handling Panamax-class bulk carrier vessels. OBOT LLC aims for an initial 9 to 10-million-ton throughput capacity, leveraging direct access to Class 1 rail via short-line operator Oakland Global Rail Enterprise. The terminal is also equipped to unload large, bulk commodity unit trains and store coal in on-site bulk storage sheds.
Insight Terminal Solutions (ITS) has received a sublease from OBOT LLC to develop the West Gateway marine export terminal. ITS plans to finalize design, secure outstanding permits, and complete terminal construction to enable the first cargo shipment by the end of 2028.
Investment in this critical infrastructure for OBOT's bulk commodities export terminal is paramount to national security. It directly bolsters robust domestic coal production, diversifying energy supply chains and fostering economies of scale. By facilitating access to international markets for U.S. coal, the project helps prevent the closure of domestic coal mines by growing demand. This access also preserves the reliability of the supply chain infrastructure and the coal mining workforce through increased throughput, usage, and reinvestment—all essential for the longevity and resilience of the U.S. coal industry.
The project aligns with Executive Order 14156, "Declaring a National Energy Emergency," and the most recent Presidential Determination Pursuant to 303 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as Amended, on Coal Supply Chains and Baseload Power Generation Capacity.
Federal Funding: $75,000,000
Non-Federal Funding: $156,773,000
Total Value: $231,773,000