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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gasification Technologies -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1274)	10/20/2011 3:03:59 PM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

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To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1274)	10/20/2011 3:04:02 PM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

IEPA issues draft permit for Taylorville plant Coal Trader (19-Oct-11) plattsenergyweektv.com The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency issued a draft construction permit Tuesday for Tenaska's proposed $3.5 billion Taylorville Energy Center coal gasification plant in Christian County. Under the permit, Christian County Generation, a Tenaska subsidiary, would be allowed to construct emission units and air pollution control equipment for the project, which would generate an estimated 602 MW. The Omaha, Nebraska-based independent power producer would be permitted to install a gasification block with two coal gasifiers and a power block with two turbines. The plant would convert high-sulfur Illinois coal into synthetic natural gas that would be burned in the turbines to generate electricity. The state agency scheduled a December 1 public hearing on the draft permit. Public comments will be accepted by IEPA through the end of this year. Recently, Illinois Senate President John Cullerton announced plans to revive stalled legislation authorizing the project when lawmakers convene in Springfield later this fall for a two-week veto session (PCT 10/10). Earlier this year, Tenaska's supporters opted to delay a final vote on the bill when it became apparent they did not have enough votes to pass the measure. Bob Matyi

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1274)	10/29/2011 4:40:27 PM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

Tenaska bill once again defeated in Illinois Senate plattsenergyweektv.com Coal Trader (28-Oct-11) The Democrat-controlled Illinois Senate on Thursday once again defeated a bill that would authorize Tenaska to construct a $3.5 billion coal gasification plant in Christian County, leaving the fate of the long-proposed 602-MW project up in the air. Senators voted 31 to 25 against S.B. 678, which had been revised since the Senate rejected a similar Tenaska measure earlier this year. The latest vote came during the General Assembly's ongoing veto session, which wraps up in mid-November. Senate President John Cullerton sponsored the amended version, and his press secretary, Rikeesha Phelon, said her boss placed the bill on "postponed consideration" after the unsuccessful vote, meaning it could be brought up again during the veto session or in the regular General Assembly next spring. Phelon said she had not talked to Cullerton since the vote, however, and did not know his current plans. Tenaska Vice President Bart Ford said in an interview that the Omaha, Nebraska-based independent power producer still hopes for a favorable vote before the veto session ends. "We thought the votes were there," he said. "I think we've addressed every concern that has been raised. I think the legislation was well received. We just need to get a few more votes." Six, in fact. But whether that is likely is unclear. The project is opposed by Commonwealth Edison, the state's largest electric utility, and its parent company, Exelon. They contend the project would unfairly raise electric rates for Illinois consumers and, indeed, many large industrial customers have opposed the project. The so-called Taylorville Energy Center plant is supported by Attorney General Lisa Madigan, the Citizens Utility Board consumer watchdog group and several labor unions. If the bill fails to pass this year, Ford hinted it might be the end of the road for the project, first unveiled four years ago. "This is something we have to get done in the veto session," he said. "If we don't get the vote in the veto session, that's a different matter." Bob Matyi

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1274)	5/13/2012 12:26:36 PM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

Developers change fuel for planned Illinois plant pjstar.com SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A Nebraska company has amended its proposed plan to build an electrical power plant in central Illinois, saying it would use natural gas instead of gasified coal to power the operation, cutting the cost of the project by nearly two-thirds. Omaha, Neb.-based Tenaska hopes that by removing coal from the equation, the General Assembly will approve its plan to build the Taylorville Energy Center in Christian County, The Herald & Review in Decatur reported Thursday. The legislature could vote on the issue within weeks. As part of its original plan, Tenaska had sought to build a gasification island that converted coal into synthetic gas, injecting greenhouse gas emissions underground while using the gasified coal as its fuel source for electrical generation. Dropping the coal portion would mean the plant would not sequester emissions. The change slashed the project's estimated cost to about $1.1 billion. The proposal remains controversial, party over Tenaska wanting the state lawmakers to sign off on a plan that would require customers to buy electricity from the plant for the next three decades. Business groups opposed to the rate structure say they will continue challenging that plan, and environmentalists have voiced concerns about the pollution the plant would cause. The Illinois Coal Association's chief, Phil Gonet, believes the plant will be built so it can later be retrofitted to begin transforming Illinois coal into a synthetic natural gas. "There's still a hope that there's coal in the future," he told The Chicago Tribune. "Getting something under construction and up and running so that maybe in three years they consider building on the gasification component - that's better than where we are today." ===== Developers change fuel for planned Illinois plant wjbc.com BLOOMINGTON – The Nebraska company that wants to build a fuel plant in southern Illinois has changed its plan, but local business leaders are still against it. Tenaska at first wanted an experimental coal gasification plant in Taylorville, but owners are now hoping for legislative approval of a plant fueled by natural gas. There’s a coalition opposed to the proposal, called STOP, and the McLean County Chamber of Commerce is a member. Government Affairs Director Ryan Whitehouse said the concerns with the project are still there, including state subsidies the plant would get. “They’re getting a 30 year guaranteed subsidy with this and that would mean there’s going to be costs to residential and businesses,” Whitehouse said. “The rate of return is still going to be there.” Whitehouse said Tenaska has admitted it will build the plant in two stages. “They’re going to make it that if natural gas prices ever get back up that it’s not economical for them to keep natural gas, that they can build out even more and go back to coal and get that synthetic fuel,” Whitehouse said. Under the plan, Illinois utilities would be required to buy electricity from the plant for the next 30 years. According to the Chicago Tribune, under the new deal, electricity increases to businesses would be capped at one-tenth of a cent per kilowatt hour while residential bills would get no more than three-quarters of a percentage increase. The plan is backed by Senate President John Cullerton. Supporters say it will create jobs. The original concept was backed by Southern Illinois University because of the research opportunities tied to finding an environmentally friendlier way to use the state’s coal. “I think honestly in this climate when a plant like this can go up in Taylorville, and they’re talking about job creation that the general public looks at that and thinks, ‘We have to support this,’ but if the education is there and they see that this will really cost the taxpayers of Illinois,” Whitehouse said. “This is not really a great plan for the state of Illinois to get into regulating energy prices and guaranteeing rates of return on electricity to one company that’s not even an Illinois company, when the state of Illinois doesn’t guarantee the rates of return on anything else.” Stephanie Pawlowski can be reached at Stephanie@wjbc.com.

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1274)	5/15/2012 10:34:59 AM
From: Dennis Roth	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1740

'Clean' coal minus the coal The case for Tenaska still hasn't been made chicagotribune.com May 14, 2012 For a few years now, Tenaska Inc. has been trying to sell Illinois lawmakers on a $3.5 billion plant in downstate Taylorville that would use coal to produce electricity with less pollution. Emissions would be kept underground instead of being released into the air. Voila! "Clean" coal. The project has struggled, and with good reason: Energy from the Taylorville project would cost an estimated $300 million per year above market rates to produce electricity. The Legislature was being asked to guarantee that Illinois consumers and businesses pay that cost. Though this would provide work in Illinois and a market for Illinois coal, lawmakers were skeptical about the value. We were too. As the debate over Tenaska's proposal dragged on, dramatic things happened in the market for energy. Our nation is awash in natural gas. It is plentiful and cheap. Natural gas sold for less than $2 per 1,000 cubic feet in April, down from $14 a few years ago. Techniques like horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing are tapping into energy reserves that until recently were considered out of reach. Shale oil in North Dakota, oil sands in Canada and deepwater production in the Gulf of Mexico have made North America the world's fastest-growing source of new oil and gas supplies. We know commodity prices are volatile, especially for natural gas. Based on the technological advances kicking in today, however, natural-gas prices aren't likely to rise in the foreseeable future to levels that would make clean coal anything close to a viable market alternative. Tenaska, recognizing that its deal was going nowhere, now wants to dump the clean-coal part of its project and instead build its power plant to operate on natural gas. If clean-coal technology ever becomes economical, the plant could be adapted at a later date to use it. As a result, the plant would still carry a higher-than-normal price tag, since it would contain the bigger turbines and specialized piping required for a clean-coal option that might never be needed. It would be like paying extra for a car with a hopper on it, just in case someday you want to shovel in some coal to run it. Tenaska wants a guarantee that the state will buy the power from its plant for 30 years, and it wants an 11.5 percent return on equity. Consumers and businesses would pay higher rates to cover the plant's approximately $1.1 billion cost, up to a certain cap. Those guarantees sound great — for Tenaska. For the citizens of Illinois, they still sound mighty pricey. Tenaska argues that this is a good deal for Illinois because it will add electric generating capacity at a time when coal-fired plants in the region are going to disappear. Yes, more capacity should temper energy prices in the future. We suspect, though, that if other companies were encouraged to bid, the same generating capacity could be achieved for a lot less money — without building a clean coal plant minus the clean coal. Last year, Illinois lawmakers approved two subsidized coal-to-gas projects. Given the trends in natural-gas production, the Leucadia and Power Holdings projects look more like white elephants than ever. Making a synthetic version of a product found in growing abundance makes no economic sense. Neither plant has broken ground. Even with state assistance, they may never be built. Tenaska's 11th-hour decision to abandon clean coal for its project raises more doubts about these others. Illinois legislators, take a break and see what happens now that natural gas is flooding the marketplace. Midwest factories for years have operated at a disadvantage to rival manufacturing overseas, largely because of higher labor costs, but also because of high energy costs. Now we're seeing businesses take advantage where they can from lower prices. Trucking fleets are laying the groundwork to switch from diesel to natural gas. Office buildings, restaurants and shops can reasonably expect lower heating and cooling costs in the future. The new wave of domestic energy production stands to increase output and growth pretty much across the board, unless government manages to get in the way. Copyright © 2012, Chicago Tribune ---- My thanks to Bearcatbob for bringing this story to my attention. Message 28144530