New Energy Project Benefits TMU
Elected officials and city and state leaders cut the ribbon on Wednesday on Missouri’s newest renewable clean energy project in Lamar.
Trenton Municipal Utilities and 34 other municipal electric utilities in Missouri receive electric power from this project.
The multi-faceted project is a partnership between the Missouri Public Energy Pool, the City of Lamar, the Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission, Allied Waste Services and the Prairie View Regional Landfill. All had representatives in attendance for the facility’s ribbon cutting.
“Today, TMU and other municipal utilities across Missouri are doing their part for the environment,” said Chad Davis, Utility Director of TMU and chairman of the MoPEP Committee. “This project provides TMU and all of the other MoPEP member cities with another consistent, clean, cost-effective source of energy for our customers.”
The $6 million Lamar municipal project will add 3.2 megawatts of clean energy to the MoPEP portfolio and the project has room for potential expansion. The additional low-cost energy brings MoPEP’s current baseload capacity to 211 MW.
Power from this project is provided to TMU through a wholesale power supply contract with the 35-member, MoPEP power pool which is administered by MJMEUC. The city of Lamar maintains the long-term fuel contract with Allied Waste for the recycled methane and provides the operation and maintenance of the local gas generators.
“We are pleased to have this project up and running,” said Lynn Calton, Lamar City Administrator. “It’s been a long process but well worth the effort.”
Electric production from the two 1.6 megawatt gas generators came online during the week of June 21. The clean energy will produce enough energy to power roughly 2,300 homes. With the addition of this renewable project, MoPEP’s renewable portfolio meets about 10 percent of the municipal agency’s peak demand for electricity.
“We like this reliable project because it is emission-neutral and low-cost,” said John Grot-zinger. “No new emissions are released and capturing the waste methane recycles an untapped fuel. It’s cleaner, it’s safer, and it’s healthier.”
Prior to the project, the waste methane was flared off from the landfill.
Sanitary landfills produce large amounts of methane and CO2 gas due to the natural biological digestion of the organic materials incorporated in the fill. Internal combustion engines are used to consume (destroy) the methane gas extracted from landfills with the aid of a gas collection system.
MoPEP was formed by its 35-participating member cities to generate or purchase wholesale power collectively and create greater economies of scale. Each city has a voting representative on the governing board.
MoPEP’s other clean energy projects include a wind farm in Rock Port, Corps of Engineer hydropower contracts throughout Missouri and two cogeneration partnerships with ethanol production plants.
