Starting Sunday evening, Dec. 11, Omaha Public Power District will work with a contracted team to begin moving a second simple-cycle generator and turbine set to Turtle Creek Station (TCS), a natural gas generation balancing plant currently under construction.
The first set was moved to that site, 168th Street and Fairview Road in Papillion, during the last week of October and into November.
Moving these components and related equipment from Siemens Energy will take place in two parts with the second likely coming within the next week or so. Like October’s heavy haul, this Sunday’s move is planned for late evening and overnight hours to minimize traffic disruption in the area, as brief road closures may be needed.
The equipment arrives to our area by rail before being loaded on a trailer for the final leg of its journey from a local rail spur station to TCS. These components on a trailer can weigh up to 862,000 pounds. Together, the truck and trailer set-up is 196 feet long.
OPPD and our contracted large equipment movers have coordinated with city, county and state officials, as well as members of law enforcement, to ensure the safety of the public and workers along the route. If members of the public come across this move, we ask that they refrain from approaching employees, contractors or vehicles and stay far back from the work taking place so that we can complete it safely.
TCS is one of two new plants being constructed as part of OPPD’s Power with Purpose (PwP) initiative to add up to 600 megawatts (MW) of utility-scale solar and 600 MW of natural gas generation. The other, Standing Bear Lake Station (SBLS), is located near 120th Street and Military Road. OPPD’s diverse energy mix will help us power our growing communities, prioritizing reliability and resiliency, while continuing our commitment to net-zero carbon by 2050.
Also of note, additional equipment arrived at SBLS this morning. That truckload contained the first of three generator step-up transformers for that plant. Others will arrive later this month. These loads are much smaller in size than other equipment brought to that plant back in September and do not require road closures.
To learn more about our natural gas and solar projects and progress to date, please visit OPPDCommunityConnect.com.