A giant, state-of-the art electric power generating facility in the 2100 block of Marshalltown’s East Nevada Street and Gene Beach Drive does its job in a workmanlike manner, 24/7, 365 days per year.

It dwarfs nearby fields now barren and covered with light snow, but not long ago, the fields were full of corn and soybeans. Farmers went about their annual task of harvesting with combines, wagons and semis coming and going.

Nearly six years ago, the construction site where the power plant is was a small bustling city, and an estimated 800 to 1,200 workers were on site per day during peak construction. They

installed several acres of cable, concrete, piping and steel, followed by the installation of steam turbines and other equipment.

Traffic generated from workers and suppliers was so profuse that the city installed temporary traffic signals on nearby streets for safety. Fast forward to present day, and the facility’s 20 employees take their job of supplying power to hundreds of thousands of customers in several states seriously.

Fittingly named the Marshalltown Generating Station (MGS) and owned by Alliant Energy of Cedar Rapids, it is a natural gas-fired plant that became operational April 1, 2017. It was nearly 10 years in the making, required 2 ½ years to build and cost $645 million.

“It is a combined-cycle facility,” said Morgan Hawk, an Alliant spokesperson. “A combined-cycle facility is an efficient model of using two gas turbines to turn two generators by means of internal combustion. The exhaust, a byproduct of combustion, is then passed through a Heat Recovery Steam Generator, which has thousands of tubes that capture heat from the exhaust and convert water to steam. That steam is then used to power (spin) a steam turbine that turns another generator, thus increasing the overall efficiency of the plant.”

A sophisticated solar-power collection and generating system was put into service in October 2020. With full sun, solar panels can fully charge a nearby battery within two hours. When discharged, the battery can power nearly 200 homes for two hours.

Others took notice of Alliant’s investment.

“The MGS was the first infrastructure project in Iowa to receive the Envision Platinum Award. The Envision system rates the sustainability of infrastructure projects across a full range of environmental, social, and economic impacts, and the Platinum award is the highest attainable Envision recognition award,” said Hawk.

For a time, electricity-generating plants were fired by coal due to cost and availability. The former Sutherland Generating Station (SGS) in the 3000 block of East Main Street in Marshalltown — and also owned by Alliant — burned trainloads of coal over the years to supply electrical needs to its thousands of customers.

“The SGS ceased operations in June 2017 following the construction of the MGS,” said Hawk. “Alliant Energy completed the implosion of SGS in August 2019. Closure of the coal-fired is an example of our transition to cleaner, renewable energy. Alliant Energy still owns the property and maintains three small fast-start generators on the site that were installed in the mid-1970s. The rest of the site has been returned to native prairie grass.”

With two major natural gas pipelines near Marshalltown and a plentiful supply of clean water from the Marshalltown Water Works, Alliant officials believed natural gas was the most cost-efficient and environmentally friendly resource.

“It (MGS) emits less than half the carbon dioxide, about two-thirds less nitrogen and roughly 99 percent less sulfur and mercury than traditional coal-fired generation,” said Hawk.

The dedication attracted now governor but then Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, Alliant officials, then and now former Marshalltown Mayor Jim Lowrance and representatives from KBR, the general contractor. Joining them were Marshall County officials.

Also represented were trade unions representing the carpenters, concrete finishers, electricians, pipefitters and others who built the facility, all without any serious injury. Looking on at the dedication were hundreds of central Iowans eager to see the new development.

In remarks, Patricia Kampling — then Alliant’s Chairman of the Board and CEO — was effusive in her praise of Marshall Economic Development and city and county officials for their interest long before the project broke ground in 2014.

“We are here to recognize and thank the Marshalltown area for support of our Marshalltown Generating Station project,” said Kampling.

Marshalltown beat out 160 other communities vying for the project, which was extremely competitive. During the evaluation process, local economic development, local elected officials and civic groups promoted Marshalltown.

The project generated an estimated $50 million in economic impact, with workers in the construction trade, motels, restaurants and suppliers benefitting. The Marshalltown area’s apartment vacancy rate plummeted to nearly zero for a time due to the influx of workers and others.

Marshaltown’s iconic Emerson Process Management supplied valves and computer software.

The economic benefit to the city and county continues, from property taxes, supplies purchased and wages paid.

Gene Beach Drive, a portion of East Nevada Street leading into the plant, is named, fittingly, in honor of the late Gene Beach, a Marshalltown mayor, attorney and civic leader whose leadership helped make the plant a reality. Lowrance presented Kay Beach, Gene’s widow, with a replica of the sign at a June 2017 Marshalltown city council meeting.