MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. — By 2018, private developer Moundsville Power LLC of Buffalo, N.Y., hopes to generate 549 megawatts of electricity by burning Marcellus and Utica shale natural gas in a $615 million plant along the Ohio River.
During the Marshall County Commission meeting Tuesday, officials from Moundsville Power and the Regional Economic Development Partnership discussed the project, on which developers hope to break ground either later this year or in early 2015.
“We have been working on this for a long time,” said Andrew Dorn, managing partner with Moundsville Power. He also said during the meeting the company has filed for air quality permits from the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Officials said the project’s construction phase will create 400-500 part-time jobs, while about 30 full-time workers will run the proposed plant once it is operational. The company plans to construct the facility on a 37.5-acre parcel along W.Va. 2 between the Williams Energy fractionation natural gas processing plant and the Moundsville Country Club.
“It is exciting because we now have a local user for the gas that is being produced here,” Don Rigby, RED executive director, said.
“We look forward to continuing to work on this,” added Commissioner Don Mason.
According to organizers and Marshall County Administrator Betsy Frohnapfel, the county would end up owning the plant under the proposed plan. The company would then lease the facility and land from the county to conduct its business. Frohnapfel said she does not believe the commission will enter such an agreement for at least a few months.
On Tuesday, Mason, along with commissioners Bob Miller and Brian Schambach, approved a resolution that would allow Moundsville Power to have a Payment in Lieu of Tax agreement, instead of paying regular property taxes. Frohnapfel said the company would make a $4.2 million payment over 30 years.
Information provided by Frohnapfel states that “a PILOT is the only way this project can be financially feasible. Power plants are very expensive and capital intensive.”
Company officials said the proposed plant would generate 549 megawatts of power. By comparison, the coal-fired American Electric Power Mitchell plant produces 1,600 megawatts, while AEP’s Kammer plant, which is scheduled to close in 2015, yields about 630 megawatts, according to AEP…
