Clean-coal power plant to get permit
BY TIM LANDIS, BUSINESS EDITOR, JOURNAL REGISTER

JUNE 5, 2007 – TAYLORVILLE, ILL. – There’s good news and uncertain news for developers of a proposed $2 billion clean-coal power plant near Taylorville.

A meeting has been scheduled today at city hall, where state environmental officials are expected to announce final approval of an “air construction permit” that would clear the way for work on the massive project just northwest of town.

But backers of the development also are awaiting the fate of legislation in the Illinois General Assembly they contend is vital to marketing power produced by the plant and attracting private investment.

The Taylorville Energy Center is expected to take about four years and to create 2,500 jobs during construction. The plant would produce about 650 megawatts of power - enough to supply approximately 630,000 homes - by converting coal to synthetic gas.

Backers portray the endeavor as the largest clean-energy project of its kind in the world, estimating the plant would annually burn 1.5 million tons of high-sulfur Illinois coal, while creating more than 600 direct and support jobs in Christian County.

But they also are counting on legislative approval of a bill that requires the state’s two largest utilities, Ameren and ComEd, to sign contracts of up to 40 years for purchasing power produced by coal-gasification plants such as the one planned in Taylorville.

The legislation would exempt the utilities from the current three-year cap, while allowing them to limit supplies purchased from the alternative-energy plants to 5 percent of peak demand.

“This (the permit) allows us to start construction almost immediately, but that cannot happen without that language being passed, because the utilities in the state cannot sign long-term contracts,” said Bill Braudt Jr., general manager of Tenaska Inc., the Nebraska-based energy investment firm with a 50 percent stake in the Taylorville plant.

Braudt said long-term contracts provided in the legislation are key to attracting additional private investment.

The bill stalled in committee prior to last week’s official adjournment deadline, but Braudt said supporters in the General Assembly have advised the company they will attempt to include the provisions in rate-relief legislation targeted to Ameren and ComEd customers whose bills shot up after a 10-year rate freeze expired Jan. 1.

“We’ve been told it would be included in an overall fix of the utility issue. We’re a little nervous about that because it’s a big can of worms,” he said.

A group of downstate legislators also have said they would not vote to approve a new state budget during the overtime session unless it includes electric-rate relief.

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman Maggie Carson called the permit approval a “milestone” for the project. She said developers still would have to get state and federal permits for operation of the plant.

State, company and local elected officials are scheduled to attend today’s announcement at Taylorville city hall.

Tim Landis can be reached at 788-1536 or tim.landis@sj-r.com.


<<< back