Tag Archives: Plant Ben Hill

Coal Plants Washington and Ben Hill not quite dead yet

Somebody’s been watching too much Twilight. Plant Washington now joins the undead. But maybe Plant Ben Hill is really dead.

Dave Williams wrote for the Atlanta Business Journal yesterday, Georgia coal plant project to push on,

Cobb Electric Membership Corp.‘s board of directors voted Tuesday to pull out of the $2.1 billion 850-megawatt Plant Washington project, citing the uncertain impacts of tightened federal regulation of carbon emissions. Cobb EMC was the largest participant in the consortium Power4Georgians.

The consortium began looking for other partners to replace Cobb EMC well before Wednesday’s decision, which had been anticipated, said Dean Alford, spokesman for Power4Georgians.

“This in no way changes the course,” he said. “It’s still full steam ahead.”

But he wouldn’t say who else would help fund it. We’ll see whether he’s blustering or actually has any further backers.

John Roach and Kim Isaza in MJDOnline yesterday, EMC backs out of plan to build coal-fired plant, had a list of the other current partners: Continue reading →

Cobb EMC backing off of coal at Plant Washington

Could Plant Ben Hill be next?

Kim Isaza wrote for MDJOnline yesterday, Cobb EMC’s pursuit cools on coal-fired power plant

Cobb EMC’s interest in building the coal-fired Plant Washington appears to be dead, and the company has begun soliciting bids for its future power supplies.

The electric cooperative has already spent $13.5 million toward permitting for the coal plant, which would be a new direction for the company from simply delivering electricity to also generating it.

On Jan. 24, Dean Alford, a spokesman for the Power 4 Georgians consortium of EMCs behind Plant Washington, is slated to address the Cobb EMC board, presumably in an effort to save the plant, for which his company, Allied Energy, got a no-bid development contract from P4G.

The Cobb EMC board could decide at that meeting whether to put any more money toward the project.

Many details of the 850-megawatt Plant Washington, including exactly why it is needed and any firm idea of what it will cost to build and operate, have been kept quiet, sparking critical questions from EMC members and environmental groups. It was proposed under former EMC head Dwight Brown, who is facing 34 criminal charges of theft and racketeering relating to his leadership at EMC.

So can somebody come up with an 850 MW solar plant to propose by 24 Jan 2012?

-jsq