Mississippi Power Company held the formal dedication of its two new generating units at Plant Victor J. Daniel in Jackson County today. Company officers and employees were joined in the celebration by Governor Ronnie Musgrove, Southern District Public Service Commissioner Michael Callahan, and Frank Leach, President of the Jackson County Board of Supervisors.

“The output from these new units will help Mississippi Power ensure that our customers will have enough power for years to come,” said company spokesman Kurt Brautigam. “I think most Americans are familiar with the power supply problems in California and other western states. These units and others like them being built throughout the Southeast should help prevent our region from seeing similar conditions.”

Together, the new units can produce approximately 1,064 megawatts of electricity, enough to power more than 160,000 homes. They double the capacity of Plant Daniel and add nearly 50 percent to Mississippi Power’s overall generation.

The new units are natural gas-fired and use combined-cycle technology, which allows waste heat from a combustion turbine generator to be captured to produce steam, which then drives a steam turbine generator. The process allows the units to produce additional electricity without using significantly more fuel. The units also incorporate the newest available technology to minimize any environmental impact from emissions.

Site preparation for the project began in March 1999. Employment during the two years of construction involved more than 1,000 workers, which added millions of dollars in payrolls to Jackson County. Now that they are in operation, the units require the addition of 28 permanent positions to Plant Daniel’s staff.

“Everyone who brought their skills and efforts to this project should be commended,” Brautigam said. “The units came in ahead of schedule and under budget. It’s been an outstanding effort by the employees overseeing the project and the contractors hired to complete it.”

Mississippi Power Company, a subsidiary of Southern Company, serves more than 191,000 customers in 23 counties in southeast Mississippi.