Case Study: Platte River Power Authority achieves 100+ MW on-grid in under 10 minutes with GE Digital OpFlex

Platte River Power Authority - Customer Case Study

Platte River Power Authority, a not-for-profit wholesale electricity generation and transmission provider in Colorado, needed fast, reliable backup for its 668 MW Rawhide Energy Station and a hedge against short-term market price swings while keeping strict emissions controls. To meet that challenge, GE Digital deployed its OpFlex Fast Start software solution on the site’s gas turbines.

GE Digital’s software-only OpFlex Fast Start was installed on two GE 7EA 65 MW gas units, enabling rapid starts and loading with a guarantee of 90% base load within 10 minutes. As a result, Platte River can put over 100 MW (about 117 MW) on the grid in under 10 minutes, with roughly 30% less fuel burn during startup and 50% lower CO2 emissions, allowing those units to serve as effective backups for the primary plant and system emergencies.

Platte River Power Authority