Duke Energy inaugurates 1.64GW Citrus County power plant in Florida

Duke Energy has officially inaugurated the 1,640MW Citrus County power plant in Florida, which has been built with an investment of $1.5 billion.

Citrus County power plant
The gas-fired combined cycle Citrus County power station was fully commissioned in late 2019 after the second unit was placed into operations. The first unit of the Citrus County power project entered into service last October.

The Citrus County power plant is powered by natural gas delivered by the $3.2 billion Sabal Trail pipeline, a new 515-mile long pipeline that begins from Alabama, extends through Georgia and terminates in central Florida. Duke Energy has a stake of 7.5% in the Sabal Trail pipeline.

The Citrus County power plant generates enough electricity to meet the power consumption needs of 4.5 million Floridians.

Citrus County power plant in Florida owned by Duke Energy. Photo courtesy of Duke Energy Corporation.

Located at the 5,100-acre Crystal River Energy Complex in Citrus County, about 85 miles north of Tampa, the gas-fired Citrus County power project is made up of two Mitsubishi Model 501GAC combustible turbine generators, each of 820MW blocks, four combustion turbine generators and a couple of steam turbine generators.

The Crystal River Energy Complex also houses two operating and two retired coal-fired units, and a decommissioning nuclear plant.

The new Citrus County power plant is expected to reduce sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and other emissions by 90%, compared to the two coal-fired units built in the 1960s. Duke Energy officially retired the two coal-fired units in December 2018.

Citrus County power plant jobs

During its construction phase, the Citrus County power plant created nearly 3,000 temporary construction jobs and provided work to 100 plus companies. Currently, the Citrus County power project is operated and maintained by approximately 50 full-time Duke Energy employees.

The Citrus County power project is said to have generated more than $600 million in economic benefits during construction and is said to offer close to $13 million annually during its 35-year operational life.

Lynn Good – Duke Energy chairman, president and CEO said: “Our $1.5 billion investment in the new Citrus Combined Cycle Station is another example of the cleaner, smarter energy future we’re creating for our customers.

“This highly efficient, state-of-the-art natural gas station is delivering significant economic and environmental benefits to Florida customers and communities.”