TUSCOLA – Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich’s top economic development person, along with local and community leaders, today welcomed U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) officials to Tuscola for a public hearing and site visit as part of the next phase of the selection process to determine the location for the world’s cleanest coal plant. After more than three years of extensive planning and preparation by Gov. Blagojevich, federal, state and local partners, the FutureGen Industrial Alliance recently announced that Tuscola and Mattoon are two of only four sites for this unprecedented initiative, which would create an estimated 1,300 construction jobs and 150 permanent jobs. The Alliance will announce its final selection from the four remaining sites in September 2007. Meetings and tours began yesterday, with an informal comment session beginning today, and a formal public hearing this evening at the Tuscola Community Building.
“We’re very pleased to welcome the U.S. Department of Energy to Illinois as we work together to advance the next phase of the selection process for this incredibly important project. The geology, infrastructure and commitment to clean coal technology that exists here in Illinois make us the logical choice for FutureGen, and we will continue to demonstrate why this project belongs here. With science on our side and all of our strategic assets, we are confident that the world’s cleanest coal plant will be built in Illinois,” Gov. Blagojevich said.
The public hearing and site visit are part of the USDOE National Energy Technology Laboratory’s scoping process to gather the necessary technical information to complete an Environmental Impact Statement for each potential site for this $1 billion coal-to-energy project. The National Environmental Policy Act mandates that federal projects of this size require a highly detailed Environmental Impact Statement, which calls for assembling technical data and extensive public involvement through interviews, hearings and site visits. The Governor recently committed $730,000 to help gather environmental and other technical information for both Tuscola and Mattoon to assist with this process.
Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) Director Jack Lavin joined Tuscola Mayor Daniel Kleiss; SIU President Glenn Poshard; Brian Moody, Executive Director of Tuscola Economic Development, Inc; Jim Crane, Douglas County Engineer and other local leaders, project proponents and members of the general public at the public hearing to discuss Tuscola’s site proposal. USDOE officials travel to Mattoon for similar meetings later in the week. Meetings were held last week for the other two remaining sites, Odessa, Texas and near Jewett, Texas.
Since announcing Tuscola and Mattoon as two of the final four national finalists, DCEO Director Lavin, Gov. Blagojevich’s FutureGen point person, has joined U.S. Senator Dick Durbin and Congressman Tim Johnson for town hall meetings in both cities, traveled to Washington, DC to brief the Illinois Congressional delegation and attended a series of meetings in Pittsburgh with the FutureGen Industrial Alliance as part of the second phase of the state’s comprehensive efforts to bring this project to Illinois. The Governor also previously committed a $17 million direct grant from a clean coal technology fund that tops off what is believed to be the nation’s most aggressive investment package to bring FutureGen to Illinois. The grant can be used for a wide range of project costs.
This coal plant of tomorrow will use coal gasification technology to produce 275 megawatts of electric power, as well as hydrogen for fuel cells and other industrial uses. Because capture of carbon dioxide is critical to FutureGen’s success, a team of scientists selected the final sites based on major factors related to the underlying geology, water availability and other technical requirements set forth by the FutureGen Industrial Alliance, which is developing the facility for the USDOE.
Since the two states share the same coal basin, Gov. Blagojevich and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels signed a Memorandum of Understanding in December stating that Illinois’ strong financial support for coal development, as well as its appealing geologic features, make the state the ideal host for the federally supported project.
“Illinois is a national leader in clean-coal technology in pursuit of new markets for our coal, new jobs for Illinoisans and reduced dependence on imported energy. Our coal, geology and tremendous partners on the federal, state and local levels have gotten us to FutureGen’s final four. But Gov. Blagojevich and I are well aware that our work is far from over. We must continue making our case for why bringing this almost zero emissions coal plant to Illinois is the only choice for the Alliance,” DCEO Director Lavin said.
In addition to unwavering community support, local sponsors are providing additional assistance to the Alliance that ranges from property and sales tax abatements to site donations and/or land options designed for facility expansion or the location of FutureGen-related businesses.
State support, in addition to the $17 million grant from the Coal Development Fund, includes an estimated $15 million sales tax exemption on materials and equipment through local Enterprise Zones or the High Impact Business program. Additional project-related funding is available through the Illinois Coal Competitiveness Program, the Illinois Clean Coal Institute and the public-private partnership Illinois Clean Coal Review Board.
Additionally, there is $50 million set aside by the Illinois Finance Authority for below-market-rate loans to the Alliance.
Members of the FutureGen Alliance represent the largest energy companies in the United States, plus a major energy company in China and the nation of India. Among its major goals, FutureGen seeks to show how carbon dioxide from the process of coal gasification can be injected into and stored harmlessly in deep underground formations of rock, sand and salt water.