JEA builds a gas plant on the bones of its old coal plant
Built WorldFlorida regulators clear a $1.57 billion, 675-megawatt gas unit for Jacksonville's municipal utility
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Overview
Updated YesterdayIn 2018, JEA imploded the towers of a 1,250-megawatt coal plant north of Jacksonville. On the same ground, the utility will now build a $1.57 billion natural gas plant.
On August 18, 2026, Florida's utility regulator unanimously ruled the plant is needed. The decision moves an eight-year coal-to-gas shift from paper into steel, and ties JEA's 541,000 electric customers to natural gas past 2050.
Why it matters
JEA's 541,000 electric customers will fund a $1.57 billion gas plant through rising bills and stay tied to natural gas for decades.
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Timeline
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People Involved
Organizations Involved
Jacksonville's city-owned electric, water, and sewer utility, serving about 541,000 electric customers.
Florida's utility regulator, which must find that a new power plant is needed before it can be built.
The power-equipment company supplying turbines for JEA's combined-cycle plant.
The state chapter of the Sierra Club, which argues cheaper clean-energy options could serve Jacksonville.
Timeline
January 2018 August 2026
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State regulators approve the plant
Latest RegulatoryThe Florida Public Service Commission unanimously grants a determination of need, finding the plant is required to meet growing demand.
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CEO takes extended leave
LeadershipJEA names an interim leader after CEO Vickie Cavey, who championed the project, takes an extended leave of absence.
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JEA board approves the gas plant
DecisionThe board caps spending at $1.57 billion and authorizes a turbine deal with GE Vernova. Some members said they wrestled with the cost.
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Final implosion clears the site
MilestoneA 640-foot stack and two boilers come down in the last demolition blast, clearing the ground the gas plant will now occupy.
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Coal plant retired
MilestoneJEA shuts the 1,250-megawatt St. Johns River Power Park, jointly owned with Florida Power & Light. Customer conservation had cut its output.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
Kemper County power plant cost overrun (2017)
Mississippi Power's Kemper 'clean coal' gasification project was abandoned after costs ballooned past $7.5 billion, years late and far over budget. The company switched the plant to run on natural gas instead.
Ratepayers and shareholders absorbed billions in losses on the failed technology.
Kemper became a warning about how big generation projects can spiral past their budgets.
It grounds the cost-overrun scenario. JEA's board set a $1.57 billion cap, but large power builds have a history of breaking through such limits.
St. Johns River Power Park retirement (2018)
JEA and Florida Power & Light shut their jointly owned 1,250-megawatt coal plant, once the largest construction project in Jacksonville's history. Customer conservation had cut its output roughly in half over a decade. Crews imploded its towers, stack, and boilers over the next 18 months.
JEA cut debt and coal costs and freed up the New Berlin Road site.
The cleared land became the location for the new gas plant, closing an eight-year loop on the same ground.
This is the plant the new unit replaces, on the exact site. It shows how fast a 'permanent' coal asset can be torn down and rebuilt around a different fuel.
TVA Cumberland coal-to-gas replacement (2022)
The Tennessee Valley Authority approved replacing coal units at its Cumberland plant with a 1,450-megawatt gas plant. Environmental groups and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency criticized the review, and the Sierra Club sued over the environmental study.
TVA pressed ahead with the gas project despite the objections.
The fight became a template for clashes over gas plants pitched as coal replacements across the country.
It mirrors the JEA dispute: a utility choosing gas over a clean-energy mix, and Sierra Club opposition arguing cheaper renewables exist.
