IPL to Retire Two Coal-Fired Units

(photo courtesy of IPL)

Indianapolis Power & Light Co. has announced plans to retire two coal-fired units at its Petersburg Generating Station in Pike County. The move is part of the utility’s integrated resource plan (IRP), which will be filed with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission next week.

IPL currently has four coal-fired units at the Petersburg station. According to the IRP, the utility will retire one of the units in 2021 and the other in 2023.

“Based on extensive modeling, IPL has determined that the cost of operating Petersburg Units 1 and 2 exceeds the value customers receive compared to alternative resources,” the utility said. “Retirement of these units allows the company to cost-effectively diversify the portfolio and transition to cleaner, more affordable resources while maintaining a reliable system.”

IPL says it will need to find a replacement to fill the capacity gap left by retiring the two units. The utility plans to hire a third party to issue a Request for Proposals to find that replacement, which could be a combination of wind, solar and storage resources.

The IURC requires all utilities to conduct an IRP planning process every three years. You can learn more about IPL’s plan, including a non-technical summery, by clicking here.