Producing Electricity

The electricity you use in your homes, schools and businesses is produced in Kansas City Power & Light's power plants. We begin with a fuel like coal, natural gas, oil or uranium. Since most of our plants use coal as a fuel source, we've used that example above. Regardless of fuel source, the process remains about the same from one type of plant to another.

The process begins with an extremely hot fire, made by burning coal in a huge furnace called the "boiler." Water passes through the boiler in a series of pipes. As it heats, water turns to steam under intense pressure. This pressurized steam turns a series of giant fan-like blades in the turbine.

Spinning at speeds approaching 3,600 rpm, or 1,000 mph, these blades turn a magnetized rotor housed inside the generator. The rotor turns inside a cylinder of copper wires that constantly cut through its magnetic fields. It's the magnets spinning inside a coil of wire that create electrical current.

Once produced, electricity moves from the power plant through a series of transmission substations to homes, schools, businesses and industries.

Because electricity cannot be stored, the entire process takes place in a split second. At the instant you flip on a light switch, coal burns, water turns to steam, blades spin and electricity races from the power plant to you at the speed of light.