# Lower Mount Bethel Energy

PJM Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle · https://askthegrid.com/assets/facilities/lower-mount-bethel-energy

Lower Mount Bethel Energy is a natural gas-fired power facility with 651.6 MW of EIA-reported nameplate capacity in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, registered as EIA Plant ID 55667. Lower Mount Bethel Energy LLC is the registered plant entity or operator. The plant's generating configuration is natural-gas-fired combined-cycle plant with two combustion turbines and one steam turbine.

## Key facts

- Technology: Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle
- Power capacity: 651.6 MW
- Operating status: operating

## Grid and market context

- ISO/RTO: PJM
- Balancing authority: PJM Interconnection, LLC (PJM)

## Source-backed facts

- Owner logo domain: talenenergy.com — Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy · confidence: medium
- Official project url: https://www.talenenergy.com/plant/lower-mount-bethel-power-plant/ — Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy · confidence: high
- Description: Lower Mount Bethel Energy is an operating natural gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Northampton County near Bangor, Pennsylvania. The plant has three generating units with 651.6 MW of total nameplate capacity and began commercial operation in 2004. Its configuration includes two combustion turbines and one steam turbine, and it operates in the PJM-PPL market area. — Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy · confidence: medium
- Parties: [{"relationship":"Legal owner","name":"LMBE Project Company, LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Operator / EIA utility","name":"Lower Mount Bethel Energy LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Parent / portfolio owner","name":"Talen Energy","official_url":"https://www.talenenergy.com/"},{"relationship":"Gas turbine OEM and service provider","name":"Siemens Energy","official_url":"https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html"},{"relationship":"Steam boiler supplier","name":"NEM Energy","official_url":null}] — Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy · confidence: medium
- Parties: [{"relationship":"Legal owner","name":"LMBE Project Company, LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Operator / EIA utility","name":"Lower Mount Bethel Energy LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Parent / portfolio owner","name":"Talen Energy","official_url":"https://www.talenenergy.com/"},{"relationship":"Gas turbine OEM and service provider","name":"Siemens Energy","official_url":"https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html"},{"relationship":"Steam boiler supplier","name":"NEM Energy","official_url":null}] — Power plant profile: Lower Mount Bethel Combined Cycle Power Plant, US · confidence: medium
- Parties: [{"relationship":"Legal owner","name":"LMBE Project Company, LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Operator / EIA utility","name":"Lower Mount Bethel Energy LLC","official_url":null},{"relationship":"Parent / portfolio owner","name":"Talen Energy","official_url":"https://www.talenenergy.com/"},{"relationship":"Gas turbine OEM and service provider","name":"Siemens Energy","official_url":"https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html"},{"relationship":"Steam boiler supplier","name":"NEM Energy","official_url":null}] — Siemens signs extension contracts for two Pennsylvania... · confidence: medium
- Parties.2: {"relationship":"Parent / portfolio owner","name":"Talen Energy","official_url":"https://www.talenenergy.com/"} — Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy · confidence: medium
- Parties.3: {"relationship":"Gas turbine OEM and service provider","name":"Siemens Energy","official_url":"https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html"} — Power plant profile: Lower Mount Bethel Combined Cycle Power Plant, US · confidence: medium
- Parties.3: {"relationship":"Gas turbine OEM and service provider","name":"Siemens Energy","official_url":"https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html"} — Siemens signs extension contracts for two Pennsylvania... · confidence: medium
- Parties.4: {"relationship":"Steam boiler supplier","name":"NEM Energy","official_url":null} — Power plant profile: Lower Mount Bethel Combined Cycle Power Plant, US · confidence: medium
- Unit configuration: Natural-gas-fired combined-cycle plant with two combustion turbines and one steam turbine. — Source · confidence: high
- Commercial operation date: 2004-02 — Source · confidence: medium
- Unit count: 3 — Source · confidence: high
- Product url: https://www.siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html — Source · confidence: high
- Kind: thermal — Source · confidence: high
- Description: Lower Mount Bethel Energy is an operating natural gas-fired combined-cycle facility near Bangor in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The plant has two combustion turbines and one steam turbine; EIA-based records report 651.6 MW of total nameplate capacity, while Talen reports 607 MW of owned generating capacity. LMBE Project Company, LLC is identified in Pennsylvania environmental filings as the owner and operator of the plant, while Lower Mount Bethel Energy LLC is the EIA utility/operator. Construction began in November 2001, the project entered startup testing in February 2004, and EIA-based records list first operation in May 2004. — Source · confidence: medium
- Quality notes: ["Capacity figures use different bases: 651.6 MW is the EIA-based total nameplate capacity, Talen reports 607 MW of owned generating capacity, and the 2018 financing release rounds the plant to 600 MW; these figures refer to the same facility.","The operating-date record distinguishes February 2004 commissioning/startup, an expected early-March 2004 commercial start in the construction report, and May 2004 as the EIA-based first-operation date.","The 2015 ownership change was a PPL spinoff and immediate combination with Riverstone assets rather than a disclosed standalone cash sale of Lower Mount Bethel. The $3.45 billion ECP transaction announced in January 2026 named Waterford, Darby, and Lawrenceburg as the acquired facilities and was not treated as a Lower Mount Bethel sale.","The 2022 Pennsylvania filing documents environmental-permit modification and continued operation, not a capacity expansion."] — Source · confidence: medium
- Timeline.2: {"event":"Commissioning","date":"2004-02","detail":"A project profile reports commissioning in February 2004; the February construction report expected full commercial operation by early March."} — Source · confidence: medium
- Commercial parties.2: {"relationship":"Parent / portfolio owner","name":"Talen Energy","detail":"Talen’s plant directory reports 100% ownership of the Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant and identifies it as a PJM-PPL asset.","official_url":"https://www.talenenergy.com/"} — Source · confidence: high
- Commercial parties.9: {"relationship":"Engineering and construction services","name":"Foster Wheeler Incorporated","detail":"Industrial Info reported that Foster Wheeler provided detailed engineering and construction services for the original project.","official_url":null} — PPL Corporation Completes Construction of the 600 Megawatt Lower... · confidence: high
- Commercial parties.10: {"relationship":"Steam-boiler supplier","name":"NEM Energy","detail":"Project equipment records identify NEM Energy as the steam-boiler supplier.","official_url":null} — Source · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.1: The operating-date record distinguishes February 2004 commissioning/startup, an expected early-March 2004 commercial start in the construction report, and May 2004 as the EIA-based first-operation date. — Source · confidence: high
- Quality notes.2: The 2015 ownership change was a PPL spinoff and immediate combination with Riverstone assets rather than a disclosed standalone cash sale of Lower Mount Bethel. The $3.45 billion ECP transaction announced in January 2026 named Waterford, Darby, and Lawrenceburg as the acquired facilities and was not treated as a Lower Mount Bethel sale. — Talen Energy Continues Portfolio Expansion with Acquisition of Additional High-Quality PJM Natural Gas Assets from Energy Capital Partners | Thu, 01/15/2026 - 07:00 · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.3: The 2022 Pennsylvania filing documents environmental-permit modification and continued operation, not a capacity expansion. — Source · confidence: medium
- Acquisition date: 2015-06-01 — Source · confidence: high

## Timeline

- 2015-06-01 — Ownership transfer to Talen Energy
  PPL completed the spinoff of its competitive energy business, which was immediately combined with Riverstone Holdings’ generation assets to form Talen Energy. PPL stated that its former Pennsylvania power plants were then part of Talen Energy. This was a corporate spinoff and combination, not a disclosed standalone sale of the plant.
  Source: PPL Completes Spinoff of Competitive Supply Business - Jun 1, 2015 (https://news.pplweb.com/2015-06-01-PPL-Completes-Spinoff-of-Competitive-Supply-Business)
- 2022-12-16 — Environmental permit modification
  A Pennsylvania DEP filing for LMBE Project Company, LLC documented a Title V significant modification and RACT III NOx averaging plan for the existing combined-cycle units; the filing did not describe a repowering or capacity expansion.
  Source: Source (https://files.dep.state.pa.us/Air/AirQuality/AQPortalFiles/Permits/RACT/RACT%20II%20is%20RACT%20III/Mact%20Trucks%20Inc%20Macungie/Mack%20Trucks.pdf)
- 2026-08-02 — Operating status
  Available plant records continue to identify Lower Mount Bethel Energy as an operating natural gas-fired facility; no retirement or repowering event was identified.
  Source: Talen Energy Supply, LLC Announces $400 Million Cash Tender Offer to Purchase Certain Outstanding Debt Securities to be Funded by LMBE-MC Subsidiary Project Financing (https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/talen-energy-supply-llc-announces-400-million-cash-tender-offer-to-purchase-certain-outstanding-debt-securities-to-be-funded-by-lmbe-mc-subsidiary-project-financing-300740299.html)

## Sources

- [Lower Mount Bethel Power Plant - Talen Energy](https://www.talenenergy.com/plant/lower-mount-bethel-power-plant/) — talenenergy.com · tier other
- [Source](https://files.dep.state.pa.us/Air/AirQuality/AQPortalFiles/Permits/RACT/RACT%20II%20is%20RACT%20III/Mact%20Trucks%20Inc%20Macungie/Mack%20Trucks.pdf) — files.dep.state.pa.us · tier other
- [Power plant profile: Lower Mount Bethel Combined Cycle Power Plant, US](https://www.power-technology.com/data-insights/power-plant-profile-lower-mount-bethel-combined-cycle-power-plant-us/) — power-technology.com · tier other
- [Siemens signs extension contracts for two Pennsylvania ...](https://www.power-eng.com/gas/siemens-signs-extension-contracts-for-two-pennsylvania-power-plants/) — power-eng.com · tier other
- [Source](https://talenenergy.com/plant/lower-mount-bethel-power-plant) — talenenergy.com · tier other
- [754-acre site in Northampton Co. targeted for data center ...](https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/slate-belt/2026/07/754-acre-site-in-northampton-co-targeted-for-data-center-in-pitch-backed-by-energy-company.html) — lehighvalleylive.com · tier other
- [Source](https://power-technology.com/data-insights/power-plant-profile-lower-mount-bethel-combined-cycle-power-plant-us) — power-technology.com · tier other
- [Source](https://siemens-energy.com/global/en/home/products-services/product/sgt6-5000f.html) — siemens-energy.com · tier other
- [PPL Corporation Completes Construction of the 600 Megawatt Lower ...](https://www.industrialinfo.com/news/article/ppl-corporation-completes-construction-of-the-600-megawatt-lower-mount-bethel-energy-project--39490) — industrialinfo.com · tier other
- [PPL Completes Spinoff of Competitive Supply Business - Jun 1, 2015](https://news.pplweb.com/2015-06-01-PPL-Completes-Spinoff-of-Competitive-Supply-Business) — news.pplweb.com · tier other
- [Talen Energy Supply, LLC Announces $400 Million Cash Tender Offer to Purchase Certain Outstanding Debt Securities to be Funded by LMBE-MC Subsidiary Project Financing](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/talen-energy-supply-llc-announces-400-million-cash-tender-offer-to-purchase-certain-outstanding-debt-securities-to-be-funded-by-lmbe-mc-subsidiary-project-financing-300740299.html) — prnewswire.com · tier other
- [Talen Energy Continues Portfolio Expansion with Acquisition of Additional High-Quality PJM Natural Gas Assets from Energy Capital Partners | Thu, 01/15/2026 - 07:00](https://ir.talenenergy.com/news-releases/news-release-details/talen-energy-continues-portfolio-expansion-acquisition) — ir.talenenergy.com · tier other
- [Source](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/317187/000092222417000010/R17.htm) — sec.gov · tier regulatory

## Data quality

- Capacity figures use different bases: 651.6 MW is the EIA-based total nameplate capacity, Talen reports 607 MW of owned generating capacity, and the 2018 financing release rounds the plant to 600 MW; these figures refer to the same facility. The operating-date record distinguishes February 2004 commissioning/startup, an expected early-March 2004 commercial start in the construction report, and May 2004 as the EIA-based first-operation date. The 2015 ownership change was a PPL spinoff and immediate combination with Riverstone assets rather than a disclosed standalone cash sale of Lower Mount Bethel. The $3.45 billion ECP transaction announced in January 2026 named Waterford, Darby, and Lawrenceburg as the acquired facilities and was not treated as a Lower Mount Bethel sale.

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