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Released September 28, 2016 | SUGAR LAND
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Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A proposed, natural gas-fired generating station in Rhode Island has drawn heavy local opposition and has twice failed to secure a source of water, casting doubt on its potential to move forward. The two-unit, 900-megawatt (MW) Clear Water Energy Center is being developed by Invenergy LLC (Chicago, Illinois).
Valued at about $700 million, the Clear Water project is one of 13 active gas-fired power projects under development that Industrial Info is tracking in the New England region. The aggregate value of those projects is about $4.5 billion; two are under construction, eight are in various stages of planning and three are being engineered.
Proposed generation projects in the New England region have been difficult to develop. Power plants, as well as the infrastructure necessary to support them, notably gas pipelines, have been opposed by community groups, environmental organizations and conservation groups. Project delays and cancellations, coupled with the closure of nuclear plants and other generators in the region, have raised questions about the region's future electric reliability. For more on this, see December 1, 2015, article - Closure of Pilgrim Nuclear Plant Sparks New Debate Over New England's Energy Future; June 15, 2015, article - Summer Power Demand May Strain New England; and April 15, 2015, article - Developers Delay, Cancel Gas Projects in U.S. Northeast.
Since 2008, Power developers have cancelled or placed on hold 27 gas-fired power plants in the New England region representing $3.7 billion of total investment value (TIV), according to Industrial Info' North American Industrial Project Platform.
Invenergy's proposed Clear Water project, scheduled to be built in northwest Rhode Island, has been supported by the governor and the Rhode Island Public Utility Commission (PUC). The PUC said the new plant was needed to meet the region's electricity needs, and that constructing it would lower future electricity costs for consumers in the state.
Rhode Island's Department of Environmental Management (DEM) (Providence, Rhode Island), said it could not issue an opinion on the Clear Water project, because Invenergy had not supplied enough information about the potential impact on fish and wildlife. The agency also raised concerns about noise and air quality.
News reports in the Providence Journal show widespread public opposition to the Clear Water project. One of the concerns was whether water from one of the plant's proposed sources, a methyl tertiary butyl ether (MBTE)-contaminated aquifer, could be sufficiently cleaned before it was returned to the ecosystem.
In recent weeks two local agencies, the Pascoag Utility District and the Harrisville Fire District, have rejected Invenergy's proposed contracts to acquire water. Invenergy said the proposed plant will use an average of 102,000 gallons of water per day, but that number could jump as high as 900,000 gallons per day if the plant is unable to secure gas supplies and has to burn fuel oil during winter months.
Invenergy officials have vowed to find a water source for the power plant. But they have been mum about the details, possibly because the Clear Water project has become so controversial.
The Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board, the agency with lead responsibility for issuing permits for the proposed power plant, had scheduled a final public hearing on the project in early October, but that meeting has been postponed. No new date has been set. The panel also postponed a mid-October meeting where members would discuss the Clear Water project. The project needs permits from about a dozen state agencies, but in recent weeks about half of those agencies said they could not issue a recommendation because Invenergy's applications didn't contain enough information.
Construction of the Clear Water project is scheduled to start next May, and a mid-2019 in-service date is planned.
At 900 MW, Clear Water is one of the region's largest proposed gas-fired power plants. Two other gas-fired projects in the New England region, the Salem Harbor Power Station and the Bridgeport Harbor Power Station, are under construction. Those projects have aggregate generating capacity of about 1,159 MW.
"The closure of nuclear plants in New England, delays in constructing high-voltage transmission lines to Canada, and problems siting gas pipelines into that region have combined to make it extraordinarily difficult to site and build electric power projects in that area," said Britt Burt, Industrial Info's vice president of research for the global Power Industry. "The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) already is concerned about the region's high reliance on gas-fired generation. Unless more of these projects are able to move forward, NERC and the citizens of New England may have other electricity problem to worry about."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.
Valued at about $700 million, the Clear Water project is one of 13 active gas-fired power projects under development that Industrial Info is tracking in the New England region. The aggregate value of those projects is about $4.5 billion; two are under construction, eight are in various stages of planning and three are being engineered.
Proposed generation projects in the New England region have been difficult to develop. Power plants, as well as the infrastructure necessary to support them, notably gas pipelines, have been opposed by community groups, environmental organizations and conservation groups. Project delays and cancellations, coupled with the closure of nuclear plants and other generators in the region, have raised questions about the region's future electric reliability. For more on this, see December 1, 2015, article - Closure of Pilgrim Nuclear Plant Sparks New Debate Over New England's Energy Future; June 15, 2015, article - Summer Power Demand May Strain New England; and April 15, 2015, article - Developers Delay, Cancel Gas Projects in U.S. Northeast.
Since 2008, Power developers have cancelled or placed on hold 27 gas-fired power plants in the New England region representing $3.7 billion of total investment value (TIV), according to Industrial Info' North American Industrial Project Platform.
Invenergy's proposed Clear Water project, scheduled to be built in northwest Rhode Island, has been supported by the governor and the Rhode Island Public Utility Commission (PUC). The PUC said the new plant was needed to meet the region's electricity needs, and that constructing it would lower future electricity costs for consumers in the state.
Rhode Island's Department of Environmental Management (DEM) (Providence, Rhode Island), said it could not issue an opinion on the Clear Water project, because Invenergy had not supplied enough information about the potential impact on fish and wildlife. The agency also raised concerns about noise and air quality.
News reports in the Providence Journal show widespread public opposition to the Clear Water project. One of the concerns was whether water from one of the plant's proposed sources, a methyl tertiary butyl ether (MBTE)-contaminated aquifer, could be sufficiently cleaned before it was returned to the ecosystem.
In recent weeks two local agencies, the Pascoag Utility District and the Harrisville Fire District, have rejected Invenergy's proposed contracts to acquire water. Invenergy said the proposed plant will use an average of 102,000 gallons of water per day, but that number could jump as high as 900,000 gallons per day if the plant is unable to secure gas supplies and has to burn fuel oil during winter months.
Invenergy officials have vowed to find a water source for the power plant. But they have been mum about the details, possibly because the Clear Water project has become so controversial.
The Rhode Island Energy Facility Siting Board, the agency with lead responsibility for issuing permits for the proposed power plant, had scheduled a final public hearing on the project in early October, but that meeting has been postponed. No new date has been set. The panel also postponed a mid-October meeting where members would discuss the Clear Water project. The project needs permits from about a dozen state agencies, but in recent weeks about half of those agencies said they could not issue a recommendation because Invenergy's applications didn't contain enough information.
Construction of the Clear Water project is scheduled to start next May, and a mid-2019 in-service date is planned.
At 900 MW, Clear Water is one of the region's largest proposed gas-fired power plants. Two other gas-fired projects in the New England region, the Salem Harbor Power Station and the Bridgeport Harbor Power Station, are under construction. Those projects have aggregate generating capacity of about 1,159 MW.
"The closure of nuclear plants in New England, delays in constructing high-voltage transmission lines to Canada, and problems siting gas pipelines into that region have combined to make it extraordinarily difficult to site and build electric power projects in that area," said Britt Burt, Industrial Info's vice president of research for the global Power Industry. "The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) already is concerned about the region's high reliance on gas-fired generation. Unless more of these projects are able to move forward, NERC and the citizens of New England may have other electricity problem to worry about."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.
