Plant backers tout technology for clean power in Great Falls

Backers of a 250-megawatt generating plant near Great Falls said Tuesday they would use the latest technology to build the cleanest coal-fired plant in the United States.

By JAMES E. LARCOMBE Tribune Business Editor

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041013/NEWS01/410130303/1002

Officials of the Southern Montana Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative updated about 30 community leaders and other officials on the proposed $470 million project during a session in Great Falls.

An open house "scoping session," the first step in producing an environmental impact statement for the project, is 3 to 7 p.m. today.

"When it is built, it will be the cleanest coal-fired plant in the United States," Great Falls City Manager John Lawton said.

The city is one of six players in the generation co-op and has a big stake in the development of the generating plant.

"It’s a complex project that will have a very large impact on the economy of Great Falls," Lawton said.

The plant will use the latest version of what is called "circulating fluid bed" technology to greatly reduce emissions, officials said. Emissions of nitrogen, sulfur, carbon dioxide and very small amounts of mercury are often concerns with coal-fired plants.

But new technology that will burn coal at lower temperatures and use limestone to cut sulfur emissions should greatly reduce traditional concerns about emissions, said Larry Gatton, an engineer with Alstom Power, the company that will build the boiler for the plant.

Gatton said a plant in eastern Kentucky, a model for the Great Falls-area plant, releases 95 percent less nitrogen than old-style coal-fired plants. In addition, more than 98 percent of the sulfur has been removed from emissions at the plant, he added.

It is not unusual for coal-fired plants to have stacks with no visible emissions, Gatton said.

As for mercury, the amount emitted varies widely, depending on the type of coal and burning technology used, he said. The Great Falls-area plant will emit very little mercury, officials said, noting there is no government emission standard for the substance.

Tim Gregori, the generating co-op’s general manager, told Sue Dickenson, a local Democrat and legislator, that ash from the plant may be reused in road-building materials or even particle board.

Dickenson also asked if water from the plant will be held in lined ponds and whether monitoring will take place. Gregori said lined ponds will be built, and consistent monitoring will be part of plant’s operation.

Paul Stephens, a local Green party member and political activist, said it seemed odd to be advocating the use of coal at a time of growing concern about global warming.

Gregori told Stephens that the Great Falls plant would be the cleanest, most technologically advanced coal-fired plant in North America.

The city and five electric cooperatives are joining together to pursue building the generating plant, which would supply electricity to the co-ops and the city, at least initially.

Ray Walters, an engineer with Stanley Consultants, a Colorado firm, said the Great Falls site won out over potential locations for several key reasons.

The plant site’s location near rail lines, Missouri River water and links to the electrical power grid played a key role.

Walters said the estimated $470 million price tag for a plant near Great Falls also was crucial. The cost of a plant near Hysham, the next cheapest site, was $545 million, he said.

While the preferred site for the plant is on farmland east of Malmstrom Air Force Base, the co-op is also considering a site north of the Missouri River, not far from the International Malting Co. plant, which is under construction.

Local economic development leaders have said locating the plant north of the river could help in attracting other users to an industrial park being developed in the area.

"To be impartial in our analysis, we are looking at both sites," Gregori said. "What will drive our decision is where we can produce electricity at the lowest possible cost and be consistent with solid business principles."

Larcombe can be reached by e-mail at [email protected], or by phone at (406) 791-1463 or (800) 438-6600.