Entergy Louisiana proposes 112MW floating natural gas station

Power distribution company Entergy Louisiana has filed a request with the Louisiana Public Service Commission for approval to construct the Bayou Power Station, a $411 million, 112MW floating natural gas power station.

The project is aimed at improving resilience and reliability for communities and industries along the coast. Situated atop a barge across from a substation in Leeville, the power station would play a role in supporting areas like Port Fourchon, Golden Meadow, Leeville, and Grand Isle through a microgrid system.

Key components of Entergy Louisiana’s overall project would include the construction of Bayou Power Station, expansion of the Leeville substation, and transmission connections.

The microgrid system would provide backup power during outages, serving a mix of residential, commercial, and industrial customers, including industries located at Port Fourchon.

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Hundreds of companies use Port Fourchon, which services 95% of the Gulf of Mexico’s deepwater energy production and handles 10-15% of the nation’s domestic and foreign oil, as a base of operation. Meanwhile, the strip from Golden Meadow to Grand Isle serves as a hub for the seafood industry. Many companies in the area provide manufacturing and other services to both the energy and seafood industries.

Entergy Louisiana says the addition of Bayou Power Station would complement projects that have been completed over the past few years to build resilience into the electric system near the coast. Examples of these projects include the Caminada substation, which was elevated 20 feet off the ground on a concrete platform; upgrading around seven miles of transmission lines with about 80 steel structures between Cut Off and Golden Meadow; and undergrounding around eight miles of distribution lines along Louisiana Highway 1 from Leeville to Grand Isle and taking strategic steps to fortify the overhead electric system in the area.

Originally published on power-eng.com