Cayuga Generating Station
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Cayuga Generating Station is an operating power station of at least 1175-megawatts (MW) in Cayuga, Vermillion, Indiana, United States with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Cayuga Energy Complex.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Cayuga Generating Station | Cayuga, Vermillion, Indiana, United States | 39.923308, -87.427381 (exact)[1] |
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- 4, Unit 1, Unit 1R, Unit 2, Unit 2R: 39.923308, -87.427381
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year | Equipment | Emergency/Backup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Operating[2] | fossil liquids: fuel oil, fossil gas: natural gas[3] | 113[2] | gas turbine[2] | no[2] | 1993[2] | – | – | no |
| Unit 1 | Operating | coal: bituminous[4] | 531 | subcritical | – | 1970 | 2029 (planned)[5] | – | no |
| Unit 1R | Construction[6][7][8][9][5][10] | fossil gas: natural gas[5] | 738[6][5] | combined cycle[5] | – | 2029 (planned)[6][8][11][5][10] | – | not found | no |
| Unit 2 | Operating | coal: bituminous[4] | 531 | subcritical | – | 1972 | 2030 (planned)[5] | – | no |
| Unit 2R | Construction[6][7][8][9][5][10] | fossil gas: natural gas[5] | 738[5] | combined cycle[5] | – | 2030 (planned)[6][8][11][5][10] | – | not found | no |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Duke Energy Indiana LLC [100%][1] | Duke Energy Corp [80.1%]; GIC Pvt Ltd [19.9%] |
| Unit 1 | Duke Energy Indiana LLC [100%][1] | Duke Energy Corp [80.1%]; GIC Pvt Ltd [19.9%] |
| Unit 1R | Duke Energy Indiana LLC [100%][1] | Duke Energy Corp [80.1%]; GIC Pvt Ltd [19.9%] |
| Unit 2 | Duke Energy Indiana LLC [100%][1] | Duke Energy Corp [80.1%]; GIC Pvt Ltd [19.9%] |
| Unit 2R | Duke Energy Indiana LLC [100%][1] | Duke Energy Corp [80.1%]; GIC Pvt Ltd [19.9%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): domestic
Impacts
Potential emissions and details on the project's status and permit applications can be viewed on Oil and Gas Watch page here.
The Oil and Gas Watch database, created by Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), is a free, public-facing tool designed to track the rapid expansion of fossil fuel and petrochemical infrastructure in the United States. Oil and Gas Watch maps new and expanding oil, gas, and petrochemical infrastructure projects across the country and monitors each project’s construction status so the public can stay informed about major oil and gas developments being proposed in their communities. We track key environmental approvals companies must obtain before starting construction or operations and provide access to thousands of government records and permits unearthed by our analysts.
Ownership Tree
This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
Unit retirements
In June 2019, Duke Energy announced that they expected to retire both coal units of the Cayuga Generating Station by 2028. Unit 1 was reportedly previously scheduled to retire in 2035, while Unit 2 was previously expected to retire in 2037.[12]
In their 2021 ESG report, Duke Energy now indicated that Cayuga Units 1 and 2 were expected to retire in 2027.[13]
Duke Energy's Impact Reports from 2022 and 2023 listed Units 1 and 2 as retiring by the end of 2028.[14][15]
In their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) from November 2024, Duke Energy Indiana stated that their preferred portfolio included retiring coal Units 1 and 2 at Cayuga Station by the start of 2030 and 2031, respectively, and replacing them with gas-fired generators.[16]
In June 2025, Duke Energy reached a settlement with Indiana coal producers in which the company reportedly agreed to perform a feasibility study on third-party operation of the existing coal units after replacement gas units come online. The settlement, as well as the proposed gas units, were subject to regulatory approval by the state.[17]
In October 2025, the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission approved Duke Energy’s plan to replace coal Units 1 and 2 with gas-fired units. The Commission also approved Duke Energy’s settlement agreement with Indiana coal producers to conduct a feasibility study on continued operation of the coal units by a third party.[18] Unit 1R is planned to be in-service in September 2029, and Unit 2R in May 2030.[19]
Ownership
Under a plan submitted to the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission on May 24, 2011, Duke Energy said it plans to shut down two coal-burning units at its Gallagher Generating Station and purchase a share of the Cayuga Generating Station in Indiana to make up the difference. The plan is being considered as a potential settlement option in a more than a decade-old lawsuit the company has with the EPA. Duke had been exploring the idea of converting two of the Gallagher burners to natural gas via running a gas pipeline from Kentucky. But the gas pipeline would cost $71 million, while Duke would pay $68 million for its share of the Vermillion Plant, owned by both Duke Ohio — an unregulated subsidiary of Duke Energy — and Wabash Valley Power Association. Duke Energy would own 62.5 percent of that plant and Wabash would own the remainder.
The lawsuit that initiated the filing relates to air quality: the EPA alleges Cinergy — which merged with Duke Energy in 2006 — undertook six power-plant upgrades that added new coal burners in Indiana and Ohio without obtaining new permits as required by New Source Review provisions. Both the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will have to approve either option before Duke moves ahead.[20]
Emissions Data
- 2024 Gross Load (MWh): 4,648,385[21]
- 2024 SO2 Mass (short tons): 2,311[21]
- 2024 CO2 Mass (short tons): 4,530,851[21]
- 2024 NOx Mass (short tons): 4,903[21]
- 2023 Mercury emissions (Hg, lb): 28.32[22][23]
Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Cayuga
In 2010, Abt Associates issued a study commissioned by the Clean Air Task Force, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, quantifying the deaths and other health effects attributable to fine particle pollution from coal-fired power plants.[24] Fine particle pollution consists of a complex mixture of soot, heavy metals, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Among these particles, the most dangerous are those less than 2.5 microns in diameter, which are so tiny that they can evade the lung's natural defenses, enter the bloodstream, and be transported to vital organs. Impacts are especially severe among the elderly, children, and those with respiratory disease. The study found that over 13,000 deaths and tens of thousands of cases of chronic bronchitis, acute bronchitis, asthma, congestive heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, dysrhythmia, ischemic heart disease, chronic lung disease, and pneumonia each year are attributable to fine particle pollution from U.S. coal plant emissions. These deaths and illnesses are major examples of coal's external costs, i.e. uncompensated harms inflicted upon the public at large. Low-income and minority populations are disproportionately impacted as well, due to the tendency of companies to avoid locating power plants upwind of affluent communities. To monetize the health impact of fine particle pollution from each coal plant, Abt assigned a value of $7,300,000 to each 2010 mortality, based on a range of government and private studies. Valuations of illnesses ranged from $52 for an asthma episode to $440,000 for a case of chronic bronchitis.[25]
Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Cayuga Generating Station
| Type of Impact | Annual Incidence | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Deaths | 96 | $700,000,000 |
| Heart attacks | 150 | $16,000,000 |
| Asthma attacks | 1,600 | $84,000 |
| Hospital admissions | 70 | $1,600,000 |
| Chronic bronchitis | 59 | $26,000,000 |
| Asthma ER visits | 100 | $37,000 |
Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed March 2011
Coal waste
In August 2025, the Indiana Court of Appeals overturned a decision by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission allowing Duke Energy to raise customer rates to comply with coal ash regulations. Duke Energy reportedly argued that customers should pay for the costs of complying with Environmental Protection Agency coal ash management rules adopted in 2015, and aimed to recover approximately US$88 million from customers between 2019 and 2023, as well as US$238 million for projected costs between 2024 and 2030. The appeals court ruled in favor of the Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana that Duke Energy could not retrospectively charge customers for the expenses and directed the commission to reconsider or dismiss Duke Energy’s application.[26]
Coal waste Sites
- Cayuga Generating Station Ash Disposal Area Number 1
- Cayuga Generating Station Lined Ash Disposal Pond Cell Number 1
- Cayuga Generating Station Primary Ash Settling Basin
- Cayuga Generating Station Secondary Ash Settling Basin
Cayuga ranked 34th on list of most polluting power plants in terms of coal waste
In January 2009, Sue Sturgis of the Institute of Southern Studies compiled a list of the 100 most polluting coal plants in the United States in terms of coal combustion waste (CCW) stored in surface impoundments like the one involved in the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant coal ash spill.[27] The data came from the EPA's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) for 2006, the most recent year available.[28]
Cayuga Generating Station ranked number 34 on the list, with 1,154,623 pounds of coal combustion waste released to surface impoundments in 2006.[27]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 https://web.archive.org/web/20230509053328/https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/eia860m/. Archived from the original on 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2026-04-16.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "U.S. Energy Information Administration, Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory (November 2019)". Archived from the original on 2020-06-12. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ↑ "U.S. Energy Information Administration, Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory (July 2021)". Archived from the original on 2021-11-22. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "2025: EIA-923 December 2025". U.S. Energy Information Administration. 2025. Archived from the original on 2026-03-25. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 (PDF) https://www.duke-energy.com/-/media/pdfs/for-your-home/dei-irp/2024-plan-and-attachments/vol-i-complete-2024-dei-irp-plan.pdf?rev=93f4e009ddfc44b0baa3f94f3e195b4a.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 https://www.in.gov/oucc/electric/key-cases-by-utility/duke-energy-rates/cayuga-generating-station-cpcn/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/10/30/dukes-3-3b-coal-to-gas-conversion-third-party-coal-study-approved/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 https://www.enerdata.net/publications/daily-energy-news/duke-energy-starts-building-470-mw-ccgt-project-its-cayuga-plant-us.html.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 9.0 9.1 https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/duke-energy-breaks-ground-cayuga-035900113.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADmizbeSwF6MUMyJF_qzQLWfZ1R9UebNMfJUdGMSWkOnMg3xkuNf0oz7IDrHRS4Bfkh9QMc5ntTjhYyGACOIktZPuCnAEFiy3w9BYDd3hH2AQsMn2Bm7u1yKqfgecXlJp6H0YE2SzmrbEnJoiYEC4hI2ByW5PTxKW5i_yXvlhHzf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/news/local/2025/04/14/public-comment-duke-energy-proposed-cayuga-indiana-natural-gas-fired-units/82997197007/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 11.0 11.1 https://www.power-eng.com/coal/duke-energy-indiana-could-burn-coal-through-2038-per-latest-resource-proposal/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "Duke Energy Indiana plans early retirement of 4,100 MW of coal capacity," S&P Global, June 24, 2019
- ↑ "2021 ESG Report," Duke Energy, May 2022
- ↑ "2022 Impact Report," Duke Energy, April 26, 2023
- ↑ "2023 Duke Energy Impact Report," Duke Energy, April 24, 2024
- ↑ “Indiana 2024 Integrated Resource Plan,” Duke Energy, November 1, 2025
- ↑ “Duke Energy Indiana agrees to Cayuga coal unit feasibility study in addition to building new gas units on-site,” Duke Energy, June 17, 2025
- ↑ “Duke’s $3.3B coal-to-gas conversion, third-party coal study approved,” Indiana Capital Chronicle, October 30, 2025
- ↑ "Cayuga Generating Station CPCN - IURC Order". www.in.gov. 2025-10-31. Retrieved 2025-11-07.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Daniel Suddeath, "Duke plans to shut 2 coal-burning units, buy share in 3rd" Clarion, May 30, 2011.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 EIA (2024). "Clean Air Markets Program Data (CAMD)". Retrieved 2025-02-20.
- ↑ Clean Air and Power Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (February 2024). "Annual data 2022 vs. 2023". Retrieved 2025-03-04.
- ↑ Toxics Release Inventory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (October 2024). "2023 Basic Plus Data". Retrieved 2025-03-04.
- ↑ "The Toll from Coal: An Updated Assessment of Death and Disease from America's Dirtiest Energy Source," Clean Air Task Force, September 2010.
- ↑ "Technical Support Document for the Powerplant Impact Estimator Software Tool," Prepared for the Clean Air Task Force by Abt Associates, July 2010
- ↑ “Indiana appeals court rules that regulators ‘impermissibly’ let Duke raise rates for coal cleanup,” Indiana Capital Chronicle, August 27, 2025
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Sue Sturgis, "Coal's ticking timebomb: Could disaster strike a coal ash dump near you?," Institute for Southern Studies, January 4, 2009.
- ↑ TRI Explorer, EPA, accessed January 2009.
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datasets, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
