Ameren Missouri, a subsidiary of Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE), received approval Wednesday (Oct 30) from the Missouri Public Service Commission to build an 800-megawatt (MW) simple-cycle natural gas energy center expected to be ready to serve as a reliable backup source of energy in 2027. The Castle Bluff Energy Center represents an investment of approximately $900 million.
Castle Bluff is designed to deliver energy on the coldest winter days, the hottest summer afternoons and back up the grid when renewable energy generation is otherwise unavailable.
"Our customers depend on Ameren Missouri to continue investing in reliability, whether that's through new sources of on-demand energy, including Castle Bluff, or strengthening the grid by replacing aging infrastructure," said Mark Birk, chairman and president of Ameren Missouri. "Through these continued investments, we are ensuring that we have a reliable and resilient energy system to serve customers today and well into the future."
One of the key aspects of Castle Bluff is the ability to start up on demand and quickly change the level of energy it provides to the grid. On-site construction at Castle Bluff is expected to start next month and create hundreds of construction jobs and several permanent jobs, as well as produce additional tax revenue for the region. Whenever possible, Ameren Missouri hires local and diverse vendors and contractors. By taking advantage of existing infrastructure and transmission line access on the site which the company already owns, Ameren Missouri will be able to reduce overall construction time and costs to customers.
"When solar energy predictably rises and then falls every day, it is vital to have Castle Bluff as a backup and working as a partner to renewables," said Ajay Arora, senior vice president and chief development officer at Ameren Missouri.
Ameren Missouri is also announcing it has acquired the Huck Finn Renewable Energy Center, a 200-MW solar facility in Audrain and Ralls counties in Missouri. Huck Finn is the third utility-scale solar facility Ameren Missouri has acquired this year. The Boomtown and Cass County Renewable Energy Centers were acquired earlier this year. Together, the three solar facilities have a combined capacity of 500 MW and represent a total acquisition cost of approximately $900 million. All three are in the later stages of development and are expected to begin producing energy for customers by the end of this year.
"We're delivering on our strategy to invest in energy infrastructure for the benefit of our customers with these three facilities representing the next step in providing our customers with a diverse generation portfolio of low-cost energy," Birk said.
Combined, the three facilities are anticipated to generate energy sufficient to power 92,000 homes annually.
Ameren Missouri acquired the 150-MW Cass County Renewable Energy Center in June. Located in Cass County, Illinois, it will serve Ameren Missouri's Renewable Solutions program. The 150-MW Boomtown Renewable Energy Center is in White County, Illinois, and will also serve the Renewable Solutions program. The Boomtown Renewable Energy Center was acquired in late September.
"As final testing wraps up on Huck Finn, Cass County and Boomtown, we are also working toward the successful construction of another 400 MW of solar generation across three additional projects," Arora said. "We expect these Missouri projects, located in Bowling Green, Vandalia and Warren County, will be ready to serve customers in late 2025 and in 2026."
Ameren Missouri continues to execute its Integrated Resource Plan, last updated in September 2023, which includes anticipated investments of $6 billion in renewable and dispatchable generation by 2028, inclusive of today's announcement, as part of the company's plans to build and maintain a diverse generation portfolio.
Further details about Ameren Missouri's least-cost approach to reliably meet customers' energy needs in an environmentally responsible manner are available at AmerenMissouri.com/Reliable.
Ameren Missouri has been providing electric and gas service for more than 100 years. Ameren Missouri's mission is to power the quality of life for its 1.2 million electric and 135,000 natural gas customers in central and eastern Missouri. The company's service area covers 64 counties and more than 500 communities, including the greater St. Louis area. For more information, visit Ameren.com/Missouri or follow us at @AmerenMissouri or Facebook.com/AmerenMissouri.
