Monticello Steam Electric Station
Encyclopedia
The Monticello Steam Electric Station is a three unit coal-fired power plant located in Titus County, Texas
. Unit 1 of the Monticello Steam Electric Station began operation in 1974, unit 2 became operational in 1975, and unit 3, became operational in 1978. The plant produces electricity
by burning lignite
from nearby mines in Texas
. The plant also receives rail shipments
of coal
from Wyoming's
Powder River Basin
. The plant is cooled by Lake Monticello, which also offers fishing
and recreational facilities. The plant is owned and operated by Luminant, a division of Energy Future Holdings Corporation.
Titus County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,118 people, 9,552 households, and 7,154 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 10,675 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...
. Unit 1 of the Monticello Steam Electric Station began operation in 1974, unit 2 became operational in 1975, and unit 3, became operational in 1978. The plant produces electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
by burning lignite
Lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...
from nearby mines in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. The plant also receives rail shipments
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from Wyoming's
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
Powder River Basin
Powder River Basin
The Powder River Basin is a geologic region in southeast Montana and northeast Wyoming, about east to west and north to south, known for its coal deposits. The region supplies about 40 percent of coal in the United States. It is both a topographic drainage and geologic structural basin...
. The plant is cooled by Lake Monticello, which also offers fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
and recreational facilities. The plant is owned and operated by Luminant, a division of Energy Future Holdings Corporation.