Washington (Platts)--18Dec2007
The FutureGen Alliance is expected to announce the site of the pilot 275-MW
coal-fired power plant today. The choice comes down to Mattoon or Tuscola in
Illinois, or Odessa or Jewett in Texas.
Supporters in each city told Platts that FutureGen is important for the
country and the coal industry regardless of where it is built.
The only snag in the process is that the Department of Energy said it would
not have the Record of Decision -- the document specifying the final site
location and why -- ready for today's announcement. But the Alliance said last
week it expected to release the news today. DOE wanted to wait until the end
of the month to make the announcement.
"The technology that the facility will use will eventually be used at new coal
plants or placed on older coal-fired power plants," Brian Moody, executive
director for Tuscola Economic Development, told Platts on Monday. "We want to
see this plant funded no matter where it goes."
According to Moody, renewable energy is good, but reliable, inexpensive coal
must remain a vital part of the energy structure. Moody also said the plant
was vitally important for Illinois because of the quality of the state's coal.
Illinois Basin coal has a high-sulfur content ranging between 2.5% to above
6%. It can be costly for utilities to burn and trap emissions as they work to
comply with low-sulfur emission regulations.
"We need a more economical way to handle it," he said. "FutureGen will provide
insight on how we can do that."
The eyes of Texas are upon it
Gary Vest, economic development director at the Odessa, Texas, Chamber of
Commerce, told Platts last week that the Alliance would be making a wise
decision by locating the plant in Odessa. While the plant may only generate
about 150 jobs for the city on the upswing, it would be a money-maker, Vest
said.
"The selling of the electricity as well as the selling and marketing of the
CO2 [carbon dioxide] would make the plant very profitable," he said. "TXU
[Luminant] has already said they would purchase the electricity generated from
the facility, and oil companies have already come forward with interest in
purchasing the CO2 for enhanced oil recovery.
"We're the only site that has a demand for that CO2, and Texas needs
coal-based generation," he added.
--Regina Johnson, regina_johnson@platts.com
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