Gas-fired power plant

A power station that burns gaseous fuel, usually natural gas, to generate electricity with gas turbines, steam turbines, or both.

Gas turbine: A rotary engine that converts hot, pressurized gas into shaft power. It drives the generator directly in simple-cycle plants and powers the first stage of combined-cycle plants.
Peaking power plant: A power plant operated mainly during periods of high electricity demand. Gas turbines can start and ramp quickly enough to serve short demand peaks.
Coal-fired power plant: A power station that burns coal to generate electricity, commonly using steam turbines. Coal units generally emit more carbon dioxide per unit of electricity than modern gas units.
Greenhouse gas emissions: Gases released into the atmosphere that trap heat and contribute to climate change. Combustion emits carbon dioxide, while upstream methane leakage can add further climate impact.
Combined-cycle power plant: A power plant that uses a gas turbine and a steam turbine in sequence to generate electricity. Its heat-recovery steam cycle captures energy that a gas turbine would otherwise exhaust.
Load following power plant: A power plant whose output changes to track variations in electricity demand. Gas units often adjust output as demand and variable generation change.
Nuclear power plant: A power station that uses nuclear fission heat to generate electricity. Nuclear generation avoids combustion emissions but usually serves a different operating and investment profile.
Methane leakage: The unintended release of methane from production, processing, transport, or use of fossil fuels. Leaks across the natural-gas supply chain affect the climate advantage of gas-fired electricity.
Heat recovery steam generator: A boiler that uses hot exhaust gas to produce steam without burning additional fuel. It transfers gas-turbine exhaust heat into the steam cycle.
Combined heat and power: The simultaneous production of electricity and useful heat from one fuel source. Gas-fired plants can supply captured heat to nearby buildings or industrial processes.

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Small modular reactorCompared with: Gas plants are a dispatchable alternative with different emissions and fuel-supply risks.