J-POWER USA's Jackson Generation Facility Achieves Commercial Operation

CHICAGO, May 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- J-POWER USA Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER USA) announced that their 1,200-megawatt Jackson Generation facility, located in the Village of Elwood, Illinois has achieved commercial operation. Jackson Generation is the first advanced combined cycle power plant in Illinois and will be among the most-efficient and lowest-emitting natural gas-fueled plants in North America. Jackson will provide an efficient, reliable, and low emissions source of electrical power for over 1.2 million Illinois homes as part of the PJM Interconnection, the largest organized electricity market in the USA. Additionally, Jackson will be able to operate flexibly, supporting the electric grid as wind and solar generation continue to increase.

Jackson Generation was designed and constructed by Kiewit Power Constructors Co. under an Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract utilizing the high-quality skilled labor pool available in Will County, Illinois. The center-line equipment (Combustion Turbines, Steam Turbines, Generators, and Heat Recovery Steam Generators) was provided by Mitsubishi Power America, Inc. The Jackson facility will be operated by NAES Corporation.

"J-POWER USA is immensely proud to add Jackson Generation to our power generation portfolio. The Jackson Generation facility helps meet the country's growing and changing energy needs with safe, reliable, flexible, and efficient power generation lowering both emissions and costs to consumers," said Mark Condon, President and CEO of J-POWER USA.  "Reducing our environmental impact is a major priority for J-POWER USA as we continue to work toward a clean energy future."

Bill Newsom, President and CEO of Mitsubishi Power Americas, said, "We are pleased to support J-POWER USA's efforts to provide affordable and reliable power with lower emissions in Illinois with our JAC gas turbines, which are the world's leading gas turbines with high efficiency and the lowest emissions in their class. Jackson Generation now has the first two M501JAC gas turbines manufactured in North America in commercial operation."

In addition to maintaining grid reliability by providing flexible and low-emission generation that will complement renewable generation, Jackson Generation is poised and well suited to support the transition, in Illinois and beyond, to a clean energy future by taking advantage of innovative technological developments, such as green hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration that can contribute to a zero-emission electrical sector as they become commercially viable.

Jackson Generation has provided substantial economic benefits to its local community while under construction. During its peak construction period, the project employed over 1,100 highly skilled union craft workers from thirteen local unions. J-POWER USA and Jackson remain committed to providing support to local causes and maintaining partnerships with non-profit organizations, and plan to continue being an integral part of the community for many decades to come.

About J-POWER USA Development Co., Ltd

J-POWER USA is a wholly owned subsidiary of J-POWER North America Holdings Co., Ltd. which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. ("J-POWER") with headquarters located in Tokyo, Japan. J-POWER USA, headquartered in the greater Chicago area, has a long-term strategy to acquire, develop, finance, and operate power generation facilities in North America through its team of power professionals with a proven track record of successfully developing and acquiring power projects in the IPP sector. 

J-POWER stock is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. In the fiscal year ending March 2021, J-POWER had revenues of US$8.2 billion and assets of approximately US$25.7 billion. With approximately 25,000 megawatts of net ownership, J-POWER is one of the world's largest independent generators of electricity, owning 97 power plants in Japan and 34 international IPP investments.

SOURCE J-POWER USA Development Co., Ltd.