On Tuesday, Valerie and I had an opportunity to visit the new Board of Water and Light Cogeneration Plant in Reotown. The "co" part in cogeneration refers to both the steam and electricity production capabilities of the plant. The giant natural gas turbines primarily generate steam for homes and businesses in Lansing. The General Motors Grand River plant uses over a third of the steam. The plant recycles the excess heat to generate up to 138 megawatts of electricity that helps power Lansing. The turbines are fast starting and can generate electricity very quickly compared to their older coal powered predecessors, which take 6 to 10 hours to start. This allows the power plant to get power back on the grid should a blackout occur.
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