ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Duke Energy Progress is a little more than half finished with its $898 million combined-cycle natural gas plant that will replace its current coal-fired Asheville Plant.
Jason Walls, Duke’s district manager for Asheville, says there is a lot going on at the plant right now. The 376-megawatt coal unit continues to operate while about 750 construction workers for McDermott International Inc. build the 560-megawatt replacement.
[ALSO READ: Duke Energy may ask lawmakers for customer rate hike to overhaul power grid]
The entire Asheville Plant site is just over 1,000 acres, including 300 acres covered by Lake Julian. So virtually every inch of it is involved in producing power, coal-ash cleanup, work on the new plant construction and construction staging areas.
Duke (NYSE: DUK) operates two 165-megawatt, simple-cycle peaker plants on the site. Meanwhile, Duke also continues its work excavating coal ash from a 34-acre coal-ash pond on the site.
Walls, Plant Manager Brian Brentise and Jeff Blackwood, Duke’s construction project director, took reporters on a tour of the site Tuesday.
Read the full story and see photos of construction progress here.
Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com:
- NC state trooper shot, killed during traffic stop; suspect in custody
- Polio-like illness causing paralysis in children reaches the Carolinas
- Former pro-wrestler Ric Flair, Charlotte Flair sued by daughter's ex-husband
- WATCH: Jaclyn Shearer's Wednesday forecast outlook
- Mega Millions jackpot reaches record-breaking $868 million; Powerball jackpot is $345 million