Bailly Generating Station
The Bailly Generating Station was a 604 megawatt (MW) coal power plant located in Burns Harbor, Indiana, on the shore of Lake Michigan adjacent to the Port of Indiana. The plant, which began operation in 1962[1] and tripled its capacity in 1968, is owned and operated by the Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO), an electric-utility operating division of the energy holding company NiSource.[1] The plant ceased coal-fired electrical generation on May 31, 2018.
| Bailly Generating Station | |
|---|---|
 Bailly Generating Station in 2013 | |
| |
| Country | United States |
| Location | Burns Harbor, Indiana |
| Coordinates | 41°38′36″N 87°07′22″W |
| Status | Decommissioned |
| Commission date | Unit 1: 1962 Unit 2: 1968 |
| Decommission date | Units 1–2: May 31, 2018 |
| Owner(s) | Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) |
| Operator(s) | Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) |
| Thermal power station | |
| Primary fuel | Coal |
| Cooling source | Lake Michigan |
| Power generation | |
| Nameplate capacity | 604 MW |
| External links | |
| Commons | Related media on Commons |
History
The Bailly Station is named in honor of Joseph Bailly, a fur trader and pioneer settler of the Indiana Dunes. It is located in an industrial park sited within the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. The plant's 300-acre site[1] reflects a belief, held by the state of Indiana and the United States Congress in the early 1960s, that the Dunes-Lake Michigan shoreline should be shared between environmental preservation and heavy industry.
Since January 2011, Bailly has operated under the terms of a legal settlement between NIPSCO and the United States Environmental Protection Agency in compliance with the Clean Air Act.[1] Under the terms of the settlement, NiSource would have been required to invest approximately $200 million in new capital infrastructure to be retrofitted onto Bailly to capture sulphur dioxide (SO
2) and nitrogen oxide (NO
x ).
Closure of coal units
Citing growing environmental and regulatory burdens, NIPSCO announced plans in August 2016 to shut down the Bailly Generating Plant.[2] The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) approved of the shut down in December 2016 after it was determined the plant's future closure would not affect the grid's reliability.[3] The plant shut down electrical generation from coal on May 31, 2018. Nevertheless, the site will continue to operate a natural gas peaker plant.[4]
See also
- Bailly Nuclear Power Plant (cancelled in 1981 prior to construction)
References
- "Northern Indiana Public Service Company Bailly Generating Station". United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
- Benman, Keith (August 25, 2016). "NIPSCO looks at closing one coal-fired power plant, part of another". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved August 25, 2016.
- Benman, Keith (December 18, 2016). "NIPSCO will close Bailly power plant May 31, 2018". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- Steele, Andrew (May 31, 2018). "Bailly Generating Station's coal-fired units to be retired". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
