Western Farmers Electric launches new generator project

ANADARKO, OKLA. — Western Farmers Electric Cooperative’s Board of Trustees and distribution cooperative staffs broke ground Oct. 15 at the future site of two new GE Vernova aeroderivative LM6000VELOX generators.

These new units will expand the Anadarko Plant to 650 megawatts of output. Construction will start in late 2024 and finish in late 2026, Western Farmers Electric Cooperative (WFEC) officials said.

Steam units that have served WFEC’s Anadarko Plant for more than 60 years will be replaced with innovative technology identical to other units already existing at this location, officials said. Planning for this project has been underway for several years, with evaluation of technologies, engineers and construction companies.

These aeroderivative units, derived from jet-engine technology, have the ability to start quickly and ramp up/down quickly. Officials said this capability is important to follow variable renewable generation assets like wind turbines and solar farms that are slightly less predictable by their very nature. The LM6000s that rely on clean burning natural gas to power them, will be a great complement to WFEC’s robust portfolio of almost 1,000 MW of renewable projects already in service or scheduled to be in service by the end of the decade, officials said.

Donnie Bidegain, president of WFEC’s Board of Trustees, said the board started talking about adding capacity during a strategic retreat in March of 2023. Gary Roulet, CEO of WFEC, said this project is good for Anadarko, the Anadarko Plant and WFEC’s cooperative members for years to come.

“Our board had the long-term foresight of building new capacity, plus a great vision for the future by ensuring adequate capacity, and high reliability for rural members, at a time when it is needed,” he said. “Adding two more combustion turbines identical to the existing five units at the Anadarko Plant, will increase reliability, lower maintenance costs, and help keep electric rates as low as possible for our distribution members.”