Generating Electricity

The Curtis H. Stanton Energy Center is a strategically phased powerhouse comprising a portfolio of clean, modern, fuel-diverse, environmentally sound power-generation equipment. Newsweek magazine has described it as non-polluting. Others just call it a good neighbor. With good reason: When it comes to protecting the environment, OUC goes above and beyond — always using the best technology available at the time of construction.

The Curtis H. Stanton Energy Center’s Unit 1 began operating in 1987 to meet the growing electricity needs of Central Florida. Unit 2 began operating in 1996. The coal-fired units have enabled OUC to reduce its dependency on oil and gas and give it the fuel flexibility to provide customers with the best reliability and some of the lowest electric rates in Florida.

1. Coal is sent to the boiler where it is burned, causing some of the water flowing through the walls of the boiler to become steam.


2. The steam is then separated from the water and heads out of the boiler at about 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit on its way to the turbine.


3. As the steam passes through rows of blades, the energy of the steam causes the turbine to spin.


4. The generator rotor is directly connected to the turbine, and as the turbine spins, a magnetic field is applied to the generator rotor.


5. The spinning of the magnetic field inside the generator is what produces electrical energy.