Ameren Missouri, a subsidiary of Ameren Corporation, announced a change to its generation strategy to fasten generation investments supporting robust economic expansion, bolster reliability and create jobs across Missouri.
The revision to Ameren Missouri's Preferred Resource Plan in its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) is designed to provide 1.5 GW of expected new energy demand by 2032, with a balanced mix of generation resources to deliver reliable, affordable and cleaner energy for all customers.
Ameren Missouri has construction agreements with potential load customers for new energy demand. The company has also filed its updated $16.2 billion, five-year, Smart Energy Plan with the Missouri Public Service Commission to support investments in new energy generation and provide the reliable delivery of that energy to customers. The plan requires continued investments in modern infrastructure to enhance grid reliability and resiliency.
The updated generation strategy within the new Preferred Resource Plan (PRP) of the IRP, which is designed to reliably serve customers and support economic development, includes:
- Building 1,600 MW of natural gas generation resources by 2030, with a total planned addition of 6,100 MW by 2045.
- Continuing investments in renewable generation resources across the region, which includes another 2,700 MW of wind and solar energy by 2030, with a total planned addition of 4,200 MW by 2045.
- Deploying a significant amount of battery storage across the Ameren Missouri service territory. The PRP calls for 1,000 MW to be installed by 2030 and a total of 1,800 MW by 2045.
- Planning for 1,500 MW of new nuclear energy generation by 2045. Ameren Missouri continues to expect to seek an extension to operate the Callaway Energy Center beyond 2044.
The IRP reveals an overall increase of 1.8 GW of capacity between 2025 and 2030 and a total of 2.3 GW of capacity by 2035. The IRP represents an additional investment opportunity of $5 billion by 2030 and a total of $7 billion by 2035 while considering updated costs for all planned resources.
Smart Energy Plan upgrades through 2024 include:
- 134 new or upgraded substations to better serve communities across Missouri.
- Approximately 250 miles of upgraded subtransmission lines, improving storm resiliency and providing more flexibility to reroute power during an outage.
- 1.3 million smart meters to automatically detect and report outages and provide customers detailed energy usage information and expanded rate options.
- 1,700 additional smart switches on the system to reduce outages from hours to minutes and even seconds.
"Smart switch technology has been a critical component of our efforts to provide the reliability our customers have come to expect," said Tim Lafser, senior vice president of energy delivery for Ameren Missouri. "These devices rapidly detected outages and automatically restored power for more than 50,000 customers during major storms in 2024 – eliminating what would otherwise have been 8 million minutes' worth of outages."
In 2024, businesses announced more than $3.1 billion in planned capital investment to relocate or expand in Ameren Missouri's service territory.
"Ameren Missouri has spent approximately $2 billion with Missouri-based suppliers and contractors through the Smart Energy Plan, representing more than 1,200 businesses in 60 counties," said Mark Birk, chairman and president of Ameren Missouri. “The reliable, resilient energy Ameren Missouri provides is fundamental to economic expansion and vital to supporting our nation's critical infrastructure."
