Georgia Power and Mitsubishi Power have successfully finished a second experiment at Georgia Power’s Plant McDonough-Atkinson in Smyrna, Georgia, where they blended hydrogen and natural gas fuels at partial and full load on an M501GAC natural gas turbine. As the largest test of its type worldwide to date, the demonstration project is the first to confirm 50%* hydrogen fuel blending on an advanced class gas turbine. The 50% blend reduces CO2 emissions by around 22% when compared to 100% natural gas. Testing was place over many weeks in May and June and included a variety of blend percentages ranging from 5% to 50%. These tests were carried out before the 50% mix presentation.
The current gas turbine, which uses J series combustion technology with a demonstrated high hydrogen co-firing capacity, was upgraded from steam-cooled to air-cooled last year. In addition to enabling this historic hydrogen mix testing, the conversion offers the advantages of quicker starting times, greater turndown capability, and lower maintenance costs.
Georgia Power, Southern Company’s largest electric subsidiary, partnered with Mitsubishi Power for the historic testing as part of its ongoing commitment to new research and development (R&D) to reduce carbon emissions across its generation fleet and advance dependable and affordable energy for consumers. In actuality, since 2007, Georgia Power has cut its carbon emissions by almost 60%. This test comes after the first hydrogen blending test at Plant McDonough-Atkinson, which was finished in 2022 and involved 20% by volume.
The Plant McDonough-Atkinson facility, located less than ten miles from downtown Atlanta, has served electric customers for more than 80 years and was fully converted to natural gas in 2012 and expanded to power up to 1.7 million homes. It currently operates with six advanced, large-capacity M501G and M501GAC series gas turbines, which deliver high performance and high efficiency, as well as three steam turbines running in three blocks of 2-on-1 combined-cycle configuration and two gas/oil fueled combustion turbines.
“Natural gas serves a critical role in our generation mix, providing flexibility, baseload power and quick response to customer demand, and will continue to be an important fuel as we plan to meet the energy needs of a growing Georgia through a diverse portfolio of generation resources,” stated Rick Anderson, senior vice president and senior production officer for Georgia Power. “At Georgia Power, innovative testing such as this is just one way we help ensure we can deliver reliable and affordable energy for customers for decades into the future, and reduce our overall emissions. Investments we’re making in our fleet and power grid today will benefit future generations, and I’m very proud of the team at Plant McDonough-Atkinson and Mitsubishi Power for their dedication to this project and safely completing this test.”
Mitsubishi Power completed the hydrogen blending on one M501GAC gas turbine unit, with an approximate one-on-one output of 283 MW. Mitsubishi Power provided full turnkey service for this project including engineering, planning, hydrogen blending hardware, controls, commissioning and risk management. Mitsubishi Power partnered with Certarus to source and manage the hydrogen supply and logistics.
“It has been a privilege to partner with Georgia Power on this landmark project.,” stated Mark Bissonnette, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Power Generation at Mitsubishi Power Americas. “Building on the success of our earlier tests, we have achieved a 50% hydrogen blend in an advanced-class gas turbine, showcasing the capabilities of our state-of-the-art technology. This is a significant milestone for both companies to help Georgia Power reduce carbon emissions across its generation fleet.”
Southern Company’s industry-leading R&D organization served as technical consultants on the project. The team is engaged in research focused on low-carbon hydrogen power generation, production, delivery, transportation, infrastructure and energy storage.
Natural Gas Supports Energy Needs of a Growing Georgia
Natural gas currently provides 40 percent of Georgia Power’s annual energy generation and has long been a bedrock fuel for the company. Georgia Power continues to work with the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) to ensure it can reliably and economically meet the energy needs of a growing Georgia through the longstanding Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) process. The company is currently developing three new Mitsubishi Power simple cycle combustion turbine resources, capable of utilizing hydrogen, at Plant Yates in Coweta County as approved by the Georgia PSC in the 2023 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) Update.
In addition to new natural gas generation, Georgia Power is also investing in existing power plants to better serve Georgia. Notably, the company has proposed upgrades to ten natural gas turbines – both combined cycle and simple cycle—at Plant McIntosh in the 2025 IRP. These enhancements are expected to add an additional 268 megawatts of capacity, helping to meet the projected energy demands from existing infrastructure. Combined with new renewable generation resources such as solar, these initiatives highlight Georgia Power’s dedication to reducing carbon emissions while fostering a resilient and reliable energy future and meeting the increasing energy needs of the state.
