POWERGRAMS

Alabama Power generating fleet continues to evolve to meet customer needs It was 110 years ago this spring that Alabama Power Company put into service its first hydroelectric dam, at a place once known as "Lock 12" on the Coosa River. Later named in honor of the company's first president, Lay Dam was the beginning of what eventually became a network of 14 hydroelectric facilities on three river systems. More than a century later, Alabama Power hydroelectric dams continue to serve customers with clean, renewable hydroelectric power. Two years before Lay Dam began operating, in 1912, Alabama Power purchased an unfinished, coal-fired steam plant in Gadsden, also on the Coosa River. Construction was completed the following year. At first the Gadsden plant provided energy only when water levels on the Coosa were too low to generate hydropower. But it soon became a vital component in a growing, interconnected system of generating facilities rising across the state, including a much larger steam plant built along the Black Warrior River in Walker County. That plant began operating in 1917, just ahead of the U.S. entering World War I and an anticipated industrial boom. For more than a century, Plant Gadsden and the Walker County plant, later named Plant Gorgas, reliably served Alabama Power customers as the state's economy expanded through the 20th century and into the 21st. The two historic plants were recently retired as Alabama Power's generating mix continues to evolve. Throughout the years, the company has successfully juggled sometimes competing interests in meeting the demands of customers. That includes providing reliable, affordable electric service while always complying with shifting environmental regulations and responding to customer needs, including a growing interest in clean energy. "We have a proven track record of powering Alabama for more than a century," said Brandon Dillard, West Production Group senior vice president and senior production officer. "And we are confident our team has the expertise to plan for, and power the state for, another century." Today, a third of Alabama Power's generating mix is from clean energy– that is, electricity generated from carbon-free fuel sources, including nuclear, hydro, wind and solar. These sources are renewable or do not emit carbon during the generation of electricity. In recent years, Alabama Power has retired many coal-fired units and converted others to lower-emission natural gas. But demand for energy is growing, and the company has responded: purchasing two gas facilities, and building a brand-new one: Barry 8, in Mobile County. Barry 8, which began operating late last year, is one of the most efficient, combined-cycle natural gas units in the nation. Combined with the recently purchased gas assets – Calhoun Generating Facility in east Alabama and Central Alabama Generating Station in Autauga County – these three natural gas facilities can produce enough power to serve up to 600,000 homes. And they played a vital role this winter in helping 1 RELIABILITY A PRIORITY AS COMPANY RESPONDS TO GROWING CUSTOMER INTEREST IN CLEAN ENERGY Barry's new combined cycle unit pairs a gas turbine and steam turbine to generate electricity. Photos by Phil Free

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