Center Township and Homer City, in Indiana County, saw more than half a century of electricity, employment and emissions flowing from the coal-burning Homer City Generating Station. With the site slated for a gas-fired power plant and potential AI data centers, here’s a look back at the station’s history, and forward at current plans.

1969

The Homer City Generating Station begins operations, employing thousands and supplying millions of customers with energy. The facility is the largest coal-burning power plant in Pennsylvania. Homer City Borough’s population is 2,465. 

2005

The station ranks sixth in the nation in sulfur dioxide emissions, according to the Commission for Environmental Cooperation.

2011

The U.S. Department of Justice files a Clean Air Act complaint on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency against the owners and operators of the Homer City Generating Station, alleging the company beginning in 1990 violated the Clean Air Act New Source Review by not obtaining appropriate permits and failing to install and operate the best available pollution control technologies to reduce sulfur dioxide and particulate matter. The complaint also alleges that the company failed to disclose plant modifications in their request for a state operating permit.

2013

The Environmental Protection Agency establishes sulfur dioxide limits.

2017

After filing for a reported second bankruptcy, private equity under the organization of Homer City Holdings LLC acquires the plant.

Demolition of the Homer City Generating Station on March 22. (Video by John Beale/PublicSource)

July 1, 2023

The power plant is permanently decommissioned. 

March 22, 2025

Homer City Redevelopment LLC demolishes the old power plant. At this point the population of Homer City is estimated at 1,716.

Later in 2025

Construction could start this year.  

2026

The first of seven turbines anticipated.

Late 2027

Power could start flowing.

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A brief history of Homer City’s energy transformation

by Eric Jankiewicz, Pittsburgh's Public Source
May 5, 2025

<h1>A brief history of Homer City’s energy transformation</h1> <p class="byline">by Eric Jankiewicz, Pittsburgh's Public Source <br />May 5, 2025</p> <p>Center Township and Homer City, in Indiana County, saw more than half a century of electricity, employment and emissions flowing from the coal-burning Homer City Generating Station. With the site slated for a gas-fired power plant and potential AI data centers, here’s a look back at the station’s history, and forward at current plans.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">1969</h2> <p>The Homer City Generating Station begins operations, employing thousands and supplying millions of customers with energy. The facility is the largest coal-burning power plant in Pennsylvania. <a href="https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/00496492v1p40s1ch2.pdf">Homer City Borough’s population</a> is 2,465.&nbsp;</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img src="https://www.publicsource.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/HOMER-CITY-IN-THE-60S.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-1318159" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Parade taking place in the community of Homer City in the 1960s. (Photo by Frank J. Sipos/Courtesy of Homer Center Historical Society)</figcaption></figure> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2005</h2> <p>The station <a href="https://www.cec.org/files/documents/publications/10236-north-american-power-plant-air-emissions-en.pdf">ranks sixth in the nation</a> in sulfur dioxide emissions, according to the Commission for Environmental Cooperation.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2011</h2> <p>The U.S. Department of Justice files a Clean Air Act complaint on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency against the owners and operators of the Homer City Generating Station, alleging the company beginning in 1990 violated the Clean Air Act New Source Review by not obtaining appropriate permits and failing to install and operate the best available pollution control technologies to reduce sulfur dioxide and particulate matter. The <a href="https://www.epa.gov/archive/epapages/newsroom_archive/newsreleases/f250b71a1211d4ed852578100066753a.html">complaint</a> also alleges that the company failed to disclose plant modifications in their request for a state operating permit.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2013</h2> <p>The Environmental Protection Agency <a href="https://earthjustice.org/press/2013/one-of-the-nation-s-dirtiest-power-plants-to-clean-up-sulfur-dioxide-emissions">establishes</a> sulfur dioxide limits.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2017</h2> <p>After filing for a reported second bankruptcy, private equity under the organization of Homer City Holdings LLC acquires the plant.</p> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"> <div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/tGvXqP4d1DY </div> </figure> <p class="font-mallory has-text-color" style="color:#555555;font-size:13px;margin-top:-2em">Demolition of the Homer City Generating Station on March 22. (Video by John Beale/PublicSource)</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">July 1, 2023</h2> <p>The power plant is permanently decommissioned.&nbsp;</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">March 22, 2025</h2> <p>Homer City Redevelopment LLC demolishes the old power plant. At this point the population of Homer City is estimated at 1,716.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Later in 2025</h2> <p>Construction could start this year.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img src="https://www.publicsource.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/SIZED_JB_Homer_City_013.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-1318177" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Trucks are stopped on Coal Road outside the former Homer City Generating Station entrance on April 16. Traffic on Coal Road was stopped when a large truck carrying equipment got stuck at the entrance. The trucks are being used to clear the old site for new development of a data center. (Photo by John Beale/PublicSource)</figcaption></figure> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2026</h2> <p>The first of seven turbines anticipated.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Late 2027</h2> <p>Power could start flowing.</p> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org/homer-city-power-plant-energy-generation-coal-gas-ai-pennsylvania/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org&quot;&gt;Pittsburgh&#039;s Public Source&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/www.publicsource.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-ps_circle_favicon_blue.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://www.publicsource.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=1318083&amp;amp;ga4=G-CCLXQK5C14&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://www.publicsource.org/homer-city-power-plant-energy-generation-coal-gas-ai-pennsylvania/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/publicsource.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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