Publisher: Energy Innovation
Date: April 2025
Authors: Eric Gimon; Michelle Solomon
Intro-summary
This case study proposes an “energy park” at the retiring Comanche coal site that combines 2,000 MW solar, 1,600 MW wind, 500 MW/2,000 MWh Li‑ion storage, flexible industrial loads (800 MW thermal batteries delivering ~200 MW steady heat; 400 MW electrolyzers), plus on‑site long‑duration thermal storage reconverting to ~160 MW for up to 18 hours to mimic a 500 MW firm profile with 99% reliability. The modeled park exports ~3.37 TWh to match a corrected Comanche Unit 3 target while keeping >40% of generation local for industry, with property taxes >$40M/year and >350 permanent jobs, and an average delivered power cost to the grid around $56–70/MWh versus ~$135/MWh for an SMR alternative. The portfolio reduces curtailment, leverages existing interconnection, and distributes reliability across many commercial technologies already in use.
Mission relevance
Energy parks co‑locating renewables, storage, and flexible industry turn retiring coal sites into reliable, dispatchable clean hubs that keep value local while lowering system costs and risks—directly aligned with repowering goals.