In February 2023, Calpine started development of the 425MW Pin Oak Creek peaking facility. This new facility is in active construction with major components onsite, and they continue to expect it to be operational by Summer 2026.
“At Calpine, we are continuously evaluating options for expansion and the ability to serve our customers from new and existing operating facilities, and we look forward to continuing to support economic development for Freestone County” said Brett Kerr, VP of External Affairs for Calpine.
While the Freestone Energy Center is used to create a base load of energy sustained for long periods of time, the Pin Oak Creek peaking facility is designed to ramp up quickly and shut down quickly, to be utilized during peak energy usage time to relieve stress on the power grid.
“Regarding reports of data center development near this site, we do not have any such contracts in place at this time. Reports to the contrary are inaccurate,” explains Kerr.
This statement was issued following some confusion about Calpine bringing in a data center along with their current Pin Oak Creek project being built adjacent to the Freestone Energy Center located near the Richland Chambers Creek dam.
A data center is a physical location that organizations, or businesses such as Amazon, use to house their critical applications and data.
Anything that takes place online “in the cloud” is powered by a data center. They are a reliable and low-carbon energy source for these centers that ensure grid reliability for their high energy demands.
As to their current Pin Oak Creek project, “We are proud to bring this additional development to Freestone County and to continue to support our community, including through the donation of over 4,000 pounds of food to local charities,” says Kerr.
Calpine donates funds annually to Freestone County organizations, as well as nearly 5,000 pounds of food to help families that the River of Life Church’s food pantry serves each month.
