RESTON – Bechtel has completed the South Field Energy Facility in Columbiana County, Ohio. The 1,182-megawatt low-carbon combined-cycle facility will provide a clean, reliable, and efficient energy source to more than one million homes. The $1.3 billion plant has provided an economic boost with Bechtel issuing 98% of its contracts to U.S. companies, spending in excess of $24M with local suppliers in the Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania area, and creating jobs for more than 3,600 people during construction. The energy center provides an important step in the state’s transition to clean energy.
“Everyone who has contributed to this project can be immensely proud that their work will not only power communities for decades to come, but also advance Ohio’s clean energy transition,” said Kelvin Sims, Bechtel’s general manager, Infrastructure Americas. “We are looking forward to continued partnership with Advanced Power to bring clean energy to communities across America.”
Bechtel completed the engineering, procurement, and construction at South Field in 37 months. The plant uses General Electric power generation equipment, including two natural gas turbines, each paired with a heat recovery steam generator and steam turbine generator.
The South Field facility is the second major energy project in Ohio completed by Bechtel for Advanced Power, the first being the Carroll County Energy facility that was completed in 2017. The Advanced Power – Bechtel team also brought the Cricket Valley Energy Center in New York state online in 2020 and is currently completing a solar power farm in Texas.
The South Field team set out to have a positive community impact stretching beyond job creation and economic benefits and supported a new construction trade curriculum with Southern Local Schools. The course has grown into a nationally accredited surveying program with the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) and has enhanced employment opportunities for its graduates.
In addition, the project supported union apprenticeships and donated time, equipment, and funds to local schools and community groups. During the COVID-19 pandemic the project donated over 1,000 N95 masks to the local hospital and emergency response teams as well as $25,000 to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Mahoning Valley on behalf of the Bechtel COVID-19 Relief Fund.
