Mohave Generating Station

Mohave Generating Station is a 1640 megawatt coal fired power plant located in Laughlin, Nevada, near the border of California and Arizona. Southern California Edison is the majority owner of the plant and was its operator. The plant is currently shut down. Coal for the plant was transported in a 273 mile long slurry pipeline from the Peabody Energy Black Mesa coal mine, located on lands belonging to the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe.

In 2005, the Mohave Generating Station ceased operations due to a Clean Air Act lawsuit and because Navajo and Hopi tribes passed resolutions ending Peabody’s use of the Black Mesa aquifer. According to the EPA, the coal plant was the dirtiest in the Western U.S., emitting up to 40,000 tons of sulfur dioxide per year.

Southern California Edison chose to shut down the plant rather than upgrade it to acceptable pollution standards. The plant was the sole customer of the Black Mesa mine, and Peabody did not have an alternative source of water, so operation of the mine and slurry line ceased as well.

In 2006, the Office of Surface Mining released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement that included plans to re-build the coal slurry line to transport coal to the Mohave Generating Station. However that plan was halted in favor of an alternative proposal to supply Black Mesa coal to the Navajo Generating Station in Page, Arizona.

On June 11, 2009, Southern California Edison announced that the plant is being permanently decommissioned. The plant should be dismantled by 2010.

Owners

 * Southern California Edison (56%)
 * Salt River Project (20%)
 * Nevada Power Company (14%)
 * Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (10%)

Plant Data

 * Owner: Southern California Edison
 * Parent Company: Edison International
 * Plant Nameplate Capacity: 1,636 MW
 * Units and In-Service Dates: 818 MW (1971), 818 MW (1971)
 * Location: 655 Bruce Woodbury Dr., Laughlin, NV 89029
 * GPS Coordinates: 35.144284, -114.593273
 * Coal Consumption:
 * Coal Source:
 * Number of Employees:

Emissions Data

 * 2006 CO2 Emissions: 0 tons
 * 2006 SO2 Emissions: 0 tons
 * 2006 SO2 Emissions per MWh: 0 tons
 * 2006 NOx Emissions: 0 tons
 * 2006 Mercury Emissions: 0 lb.

Related SourceWatch Articles

 * Existing U.S. Coal Plants
 * Nevada and coal
 * Edison International
 * United States and coal
 * Global warming
 * Black Mesa coal mine
 * Coal and Native American tribal lands

External Articles

 * Bernie Woodall, "Mohave Power Plant Operation Future in Dark,", Reuters, November 10, 2005.
 * John M. Broder, "Winners Are Few as Forces Clash on Tribal Lands Over Air, Water and Jobs," New York Times, January 1, 2006.
 * "Mohave Generating Station Closes: Coalition Files Revenue Recovery Motion," Grand Canyon Trust, accessed March 2009.
 * "Southwest Weathers Closure of Mohave Generating Station," Energy Information Administration, June 24, 2009.
 * Bill McMillen, "'Two scenarios' for facility's future," Tri State Online, November 8, 2009