Video: World Leaders Tour Kemper County Energy Facility

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KEMPER COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI)- Energy leaders from around the world stepped foot on Kemper County’s energy facility, getting a first-hand look at the new plant. The new facility will use clean coal technology and deliver safe, reliable electricity to Mississippi Power customers.

“What it is is locally mined lignite will be mined right here in Kemper County. It will enter the plant. It will be turned into gas, that gas will be cleaned up, carbon dioxide, sulfuric acid and ammonia will be removed, it’ll then be turned into electricity, head out onto the transmission lines and out to Mississippi Power customers,” said Shepard

The state-of-the-art facility is expected to generate environmentally responsible electricity while significantly reducing emissions.

“At least 65 % of the carbon that is produced in the gasification process will be captured. So this plant will have an environmental footprint very similar to that of a natural gas plant. That C02 is going to be piped down to a couple of companies and they’re going to use it for enhanced oil recovery and they’re expecting to be able to find more than 2 million gallons of oil,” said Shepard.

This facility is not only the only one in the country of its kind, but one of the largest in the world. Which is why world leaders and dignitaries are coming here to study it.

” For 50 years, we’ve been capturing carbon from natural gas and storing it. There is no facility in Norway actually capturing and storing carbon from electricity and production,” said Tord Lien, Norway’s Minister of Petroleum & Energy.

This integrated nature. Taking the fuel right off the site, putting it through this advanced technology. It’s a plant of the future and we’re going to need not 10 but 100 more of these plants across the country in the future,” said Dr. Ernest Moniz, U.S. Secretary of Energy.

The 582 megawatt facility is expected to begin operation next fall. Leaders say when it’s done, it will pave the way forward for America and the world. More than 480 Mississippi companies contributed to the plant.