Two Michigan utilities said Feb. 7 they will spend roughly $800 million on a major upgrade to their jointly owned Ludington pumped storage plant.
CMS Energy Corp. subsidiary Consumers Energy Co. and DTE Energy Co. subsidiary Detroit Edison Co. each will invest about $40 million per year over 10 years.
Once completed in 2019, generation from the facility should be increased by roughly 300 MW, or 16%. Consumers Energy operates the Ludington plant and owns 51% of the facility. Detroit Edison owns the rest.
The plant has been operating since 1973. The upgrade project will begin in 2013 and is scheduled to run through 2019. It will be one of the largest construction projects in northwest Michigansince the Ludington plant was first built. The project will create an additional 100 construction building trades jobs per year in the Mason County, Mich., area, the companies said.
The maintenance and efficiency upgrade will increase the capacity of the plant from its current level of 1,872 MW to approximately 2,172 MW.
Following competitive bidding, Toshiba International Corp. was awarded a contract for fabrication and installation of equipment to improve the efficiency, output and reliability of the Ludingtonplant's six 312-MW hydroelectric units, the companies said.
"This kind of long-term investment would not have been possible without the comprehensive energy legislation adopted by the state legislature in 2008," Detroit Edison President Steve Kurmas said in a statement.
The Ludington plant is playing an increasingly important role as a storage facility for renewable energy produced during off-peak periods, thereby making renewable energy more affordable and reliable, the companies said.
As more wind generation is added in the Midwest, the Ludington plant can be used at night and during other periods when demand for electricity is low to store the renewable power until it is needed by electricity customers.
The Ludington plant pumps water during the night uphill 372 feet to its 27 billion-gallon reservoir. During daytime periods of peak customer electric demand, the water is released through turbines to generate electricity. The plant currently produces enough to power a community of 1.4 million people.
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