Boston (Platts)--7Feb2013/338 pm EST/2038 GMT

Mississippi Power said Thursday it has retired the three 22.5-MW coal units at its Plant Eaton in Petal, Mississippi.

In a statement, the Southern Company subsidiary said the units are no longer needed, and that their capacity will be replaced by the 582-MW, integrated gasification combined-cycle unit that Mississippi Power is building in Kemper County.

Mississippi Power will retain an 85% ownership interest in the Kemper unit, which the utility said is now three-quarters finished and expected to begin commercial operation in May 2014. South Mississippi Electric Power Association, an electric-cooperative group, has committed to buy the remaining 15% stake.

Mississippi Power President and CEO Ed Day noted that when the utility built the Eaton units nearly 70 years ago, it served only 40,000 customers. Today, the utility serves about 186,000 customers, he said.

--Housley Carr, newsdesk@platts.com --Edited by Katharine Fraser, katharine_fraser@platts.com