Gulf Power coal generation share falls to 17% in May: filing

Gulf Power saw its coal generation share drop to 17% in May, compared with 34% in April, according to a state regulatory filing.

Coal burn was at 54,648 st in May, which generated 152,745 MWh of power, down from 97,514 st, or 152,745 MWh, in April, according to a filing published June 22, by the Florida Public Service Commission.

Natural gas' mix was at 79%, or 486,502 MWh, in May, down from 62%, or 278,325 MWh, in April.

In May, Gulf Power's average fuel cost for coal was $28.95/st, down from $83.35/st in April.

Heat rate efficiency for coal was at 10,899 Btu/KWh in May, while gas was at 7,733 Btu/KWh, resulting in dispatch prices of roughly $22.90/MWh and $28.70/MWh, respectively. In April, coal's dispatch price was $55/MWh and gas' price was $26.60/MWh.

Gulf Power owns the Crist coal-fired power plant in Pensacola, Florida, as well as a 50% ownership of Mississippi Power's Daniel plant in Escatawpa, Mississippi, and a 25% stake in one generating unit at Georgia Power's Scherer plant in Juliette, Georgia. Gulf Power, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy, serves about 474,000 customers in eight counties in northwest Florida.

Coal purchases rise on month

Excluding the Scherer plant, Gulf Power purchased 139,815 st of coal in May at an average price of $45.38/st, compared with 87.807 st at $46.15/st in April.

The utility bought $4.1 million worth of coal at an average price of $2.58/MMBtu for the Scherer plant in May, compared with $2.1 million of coal at an average price of $3.30/MMBtu in April.

At the end of May, Gulf Power's coal stockpile, excluding the Scherer plant, was at 273,912 st, or 17 days cover, compared with 188,745 st, and 12 days cover, after April.

The Scherer plant has 61 days of supply at the end of May, down from 94 days at the end of April.