Pleasants power station

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Pleasants power station is an operating power station of at least 1368-megawatts (MW) in Willow Island, Pleasants, West Virginia, United States. It is also known as Quantum Pleasants.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Pleasants power station	Willow Island, Pleasants, West Virginia, United States	39.367358, -81.295733 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 1, Unit 2: 39.367358, -81.295733

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	Start year	Retired year
Unit 1	operating	coal - bituminous	684	supercritical	1979	–
Unit 2	operating	coal - bituminous	684	supercritical	1980	–

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner
Unit 1	Omnis Fuel Technologies LLC [100.0%]
Unit 2	Omnis Fuel Technologies LLC [100.0%]

Unit Retirement

On February 16, 2018, plant owner FirstEnergy said it planned to deactivate the coal-fired plant, which will be sold or closed on January 1, 2019. In October 2018 FirstEnergy said it planned to keep operating the plant until 2022, at which point it would be transferred to the company's creditors under bankruptcy proceedings. The creditors can then decide whether to keep the plant open or retire it.

The EIA 860m database of January 2020 showed both units with a planned retirement month of June 2022. However, according to the PJM website, the deactivation notice for both units of the pleasants power station was withdrawn on September 17th, 2020. Subsequently in March of 2022, it was announced that the units are to be closed or sold by June 2023.

According to reports from April 2023, West Virginia's Public Service Commission was considering a plan to provide US$36 million in ratepayer subsidies to keep Pleasants power station online until May 2024.

In June 2023, it was reported that the power station had been mothballed since June 1, as state officials and energy companies tried to prevent the closure of the 43-year-old plant. Omnis Fuel Technologies LLC was reportedly considering purchasing the power plant with the intent to generate energy using hydrogen byproducts from the company's graphite production operations. Analysts reportedly doubted the project would be technically feasible, especially by a company with no power sector experience.

In July 2023, The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the sale of the power station to Omnis Fuel Technologies, which renamed the plant to "Quantum Pleasants". The new owners reportedly planned to invest US$800 million in converting the mothballed power plant into a facility that produces graphite from coal and generates power from captured hydrogen.

In late August 2023, the power station resumed operations. Omnis was reportedly planning to continue burning coal and selling generated electricity on the wholesale market while the company completed the hydrogen conversion over the next one to two years.

State Tax Exemption

In July 2019 the West Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill to exempt first energy from paying a $12.5 million tax The CEO of First Energy said that the company is operating in bankruptcy and will be forced to close the plant next year without the exemption. Lawmakers want to save the plant and the jobs of the 160 people working at the plant.

Emissions Data

• 2006 CO₂ Emissions: 7,992,029 tons
• 2006 SO₂ Emissions: 42,867 tons
• 2006 NO_x Emissions: 9,512 tons
• 2005 Mercury Emissions: 328 lb.

Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from Pleasants power station

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. 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.

Table 1: Death and disease attributable to fine particle pollution from the Pleasants power station

Type of Impact	Annual Incidence	Valuation
Deaths	41	$300,000,000
Heart attacks	66	$7,200,000
Asthma attacks	640	$33,000
Hospital admissions	31	$720,000
Chronic bronchitis	24	$11,000,000
Asthma ER visits	33	$12,000

Source: "Find Your Risk from Power Plant Pollution," Clean Air Task Force interactive table, accessed February 2011

Coal Waste Site

• Pleasants Power Station McElroy's Run Embankment

"High Hazard" Surface Impoundment

The Pleasants Power Station McElroy's Run Embankment, which stores coal ash from the Pleasants plant, is on the EPA's official June 2009 list of Coal Combustion Residue (CCR) Surface Impoundments with High Hazard Potential Ratings. The rating applies to sites at which a dam failure would most likely cause loss of human life, but does not assess of the likelihood of such an event.

Toxic Waste Data

Toxic Release Inventory: Pleasants (Willow Island) Plant Data

• Arsenic Waste: 58,898 pounds
  • Air Release: 470 pounds
  • Water Release (Ohio River): 28 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 53,400 pounds
• Chromium Waste: 87,876 pounds
  • Air Release: 651 pounds
  • Water Release (Ohio River): 26 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 87,200 pounds
• Dioxin Waste: .631 grams
  • Air Release: .631 grams
• Lead Waste: 51,532 pounds
  • Air Release: 609 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 49,010 pounds
  • Recycling (Metals Recovery): 1,910 pounds
• Mercury Waste: 818 pounds
  • Air Release: 281 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 274 pounds
  • Recycling (Metals Recovery): 262 pounds
• Nickel Waste: 73,633 pounds
  • Air Release: 630 pounds
  • Water Release (Ohio River): 680 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 72,300 pounds
  • Recycling (Metals Recovery): 23 pounds
• Selenium Waste: 19,710 pounds
  • Air Release: 3,600 pounds
  • Water Release (Ohio River): 110 pounds
  • Land Release (Landfill/Surface Impoundment): 16,000 pounds

Accidents and Negligence

• April 28, 1978
  • In process of completing the plant, 51 men died when their scaffolding collapsed, dropping them 170 feet to the ground.
• October 10, 2002
  • Two painters fell 45 feet to the ground and died on scene while operating a lift with boom extended. The uneven weight distribution toppled the lift, causing the men to fall.
• March 9, 2008
  • A helicopter removing construction equipment from the installation of a scrubber at the plant lost its tail rotor, causing the helicopter to become unbalanced, resulted in an emergency landing on the facility grounds.
  • The pilot sustained minor injuries and nothing at the plant was damaged.

Litigation and Controversy

• June 29, 2005
  • The Pennsylvania State Department of Energy instigated a lawsuit against Allegheny Energy along with four other states for violations of the federal Clean Air Act. The Kammer/Mitchell plant was included in this suit.
  • They maintain that the company made modifications to the plant without adding increased pollution and emission control modifications as well, which is a federal requirement.
  • In addition, they did not ask for, and therefore did not receive, state approval for the work that was done.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.