MPW Breaks Ground on EcoGen 10 Project

Muscatine Power and Water (MPW) marked a major milestone in its long-term energy strategy Tuesday, June 2, with a groundbreaking ceremony for EcoGen 10, a new combined heat and power generating facility designed to support the community’s future energy needs. 

Local business leaders, industry partners and community stakeholders gathered at the site to celebrate the start of construction on the project, which is a key component of the Utility’s Powering the Future initiative. 

EcoGen 10 will be MPW’s first natural gas-fired generating unit. The unit is a 35-megawatt combined heat and power unit capable of producing both energy and thermal energy, a process that significantly improves overall efficiency. 

“This is an important step forward for our community and our utility,” said General Manager, Gage Huston. “EcoGen 10 represents years of planning and collaboration, and reflects our commitment to delivering reliable, affordable and sustainable energy for Muscatine.” 

Combined heat and power technology enables the facility to make better use of fuel by capturing heat that would otherwise be lost in traditional power generation. EcoGen 10 is expected to achieve over 75% efficiency and will produce process steam for a nearby industrial customer while supplying electricity to the grid. 

The project is the cornerstone of MPW’s Powering the Future initiative; a long-range strategy focused on maintaining reliability while transitioning to a more flexible and diversified energy portfolio. The initiative includes investments in new generation resources, renewable energy projects and infrastructure improvements that position the Utility to meet evolving community needs.  

The unit is expected to come online at the end of 2027. 

“Projects like EcoGen 10 are made possible through strong collaboration,” continued Huston. “We’re grateful for the support of our community, our industry partners and the dedicated MPW team members who have worked to bring this project to life.”