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Released November 18, 2020 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A vaccine might be on the horizon, but COVID-19 couldn't care less. The U.S. hit a staggering 11 million confirmed cases earlier this week, with 166,555 new cases and 1,266 new deaths on Sunday alone, according to Johns Hopkins University. Midwestern states saw some of the sharpest increases in average daily cases per 100,000 people in the past week, including Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Michigan, according to state and local health agencies. Industrial Info is tracking more than $16.5 billion worth of projects in these states that have been delayed or otherwise affected by COVID-19 precautions.
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing projects in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Michigan to be affected by pandemic-related measures, by industry sector.
The sharp rise in cases across the Midwest follows explosive growth in recent weeks in the neighboring north-central states, particularly the Dakotas. For more information, see November 9, 2020, article - As COVID-19 Slams North-Central U.S., More than $5 Billion in Energy, Industrial Projects at Risk.
Winter weather is only expected to make the problem worse. The mayors of Chicago and St. Louis imposed stricter limits on gatherings, but large cities are not the only places with noticeable increases. Some of the sharpest growth in the five abovementioned states are in their rural counties.
A small town about 100 miles west of Chicago is home to one of the highest-valued power-generation projects in the region to be put on hold: Invenergy LLC's (Chicago, Illinois) estimated $200 million addition of a peaking unit at its gas-fired plant in Nelson, Illinois. As designed, the unit would feature a pair of simple-cycle combustion turbines from General Electric (NYSE:GE) (Boston, Massachusetts) that would add 340 megawatts (MW) of generation to the 580-MW facility. No firm kickoff date is currently available for the project, which was halted in early spring due to market conditions. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Stay-at-home advisories went into effect last week in Chicago and suburban Cook County as local COVID-19 numbers exploded, and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is mulling a mandatory stay-at-home order "if things don't take a turn in the coming days," according to local news sources. "With every fiber of my being, I do not want us to get there, but right now that seems to be where we are heading," Pritzker told reporters.
Despite its long-standing status in the automotive and fossil fuel-development markets, Michigan has seen some remarkable growth in green energy. Related projects, which have provided some of the region's fastest-growing job opportunities in recent years, have been hindered to varying degrees by the pandemic. NextEra Energy Incorporated's (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida) estimated $250 million Ranger Fork Solar Plant in Albion, Michigan, which is designed to generate 149 MW from photovoltaic (PV) panels, had its construction kickoff pushed back from this summer to fourth-quarter 2021.
CMS Energy Corporation's (NYSE:CMS) (Jackson, Michigan) $134 million uprate to Unit 3 at its pumped-storage hydro station in Ludington, Michigan, which will replace an aging unit and generate 312 megawatts (MW), has been under construction since last June, but had its estimated completion date pushed back from this October to July 2021.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently imposed some of the toughest state-level restrictions on indoor gatherings and other activities that will last for three weeks starting today, according to the Lansing State Journal. The order moves high school and college classes online, closes movie theaters and casinos, bans indoor dining at bars and restaurants, and requires people to work from home if possible. "We are in the worst moment of this pandemic to date," Whitmer told reporters. "The situation has never been more dire." For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the solar plant and hydro station.
One of the most ambitious--and controversial--projects in the region's Alternative Fuel Industry is Riverview Energy Corporation's (Indianapolis, Indiana) estimated $2.5 billion fuel conversion facility in Dale, Indiana, which is designed to turn 1.6 million tons of coal per year into 4.8 million barrels of clean diesel and 2.5 million barrels of naphtha. Although COVID-19 precautions have delayed the project's scheduled kickoff by only a few months, at least two environmental organizations in southern Indiana, Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life and Valley Watch, are opposing the extension of a state air quality permit that would allow for construction.
Riverview's permit was set to expire next month, but the extension means construction must begin within 18 months of June 2022, according to Indiana University's Indiana Environmental Reporter. The environmental objections and several other issues surrounding permits indicate further delays to Riverview's project are very possible. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 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.
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing projects in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Michigan to be affected by pandemic-related measures, by industry sector.The sharp rise in cases across the Midwest follows explosive growth in recent weeks in the neighboring north-central states, particularly the Dakotas. For more information, see November 9, 2020, article - As COVID-19 Slams North-Central U.S., More than $5 Billion in Energy, Industrial Projects at Risk.
Winter weather is only expected to make the problem worse. The mayors of Chicago and St. Louis imposed stricter limits on gatherings, but large cities are not the only places with noticeable increases. Some of the sharpest growth in the five abovementioned states are in their rural counties.
A small town about 100 miles west of Chicago is home to one of the highest-valued power-generation projects in the region to be put on hold: Invenergy LLC's (Chicago, Illinois) estimated $200 million addition of a peaking unit at its gas-fired plant in Nelson, Illinois. As designed, the unit would feature a pair of simple-cycle combustion turbines from General Electric (NYSE:GE) (Boston, Massachusetts) that would add 340 megawatts (MW) of generation to the 580-MW facility. No firm kickoff date is currently available for the project, which was halted in early spring due to market conditions. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Stay-at-home advisories went into effect last week in Chicago and suburban Cook County as local COVID-19 numbers exploded, and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is mulling a mandatory stay-at-home order "if things don't take a turn in the coming days," according to local news sources. "With every fiber of my being, I do not want us to get there, but right now that seems to be where we are heading," Pritzker told reporters.
Despite its long-standing status in the automotive and fossil fuel-development markets, Michigan has seen some remarkable growth in green energy. Related projects, which have provided some of the region's fastest-growing job opportunities in recent years, have been hindered to varying degrees by the pandemic. NextEra Energy Incorporated's (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida) estimated $250 million Ranger Fork Solar Plant in Albion, Michigan, which is designed to generate 149 MW from photovoltaic (PV) panels, had its construction kickoff pushed back from this summer to fourth-quarter 2021.
CMS Energy Corporation's (NYSE:CMS) (Jackson, Michigan) $134 million uprate to Unit 3 at its pumped-storage hydro station in Ludington, Michigan, which will replace an aging unit and generate 312 megawatts (MW), has been under construction since last June, but had its estimated completion date pushed back from this October to July 2021.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently imposed some of the toughest state-level restrictions on indoor gatherings and other activities that will last for three weeks starting today, according to the Lansing State Journal. The order moves high school and college classes online, closes movie theaters and casinos, bans indoor dining at bars and restaurants, and requires people to work from home if possible. "We are in the worst moment of this pandemic to date," Whitmer told reporters. "The situation has never been more dire." For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the solar plant and hydro station.
One of the most ambitious--and controversial--projects in the region's Alternative Fuel Industry is Riverview Energy Corporation's (Indianapolis, Indiana) estimated $2.5 billion fuel conversion facility in Dale, Indiana, which is designed to turn 1.6 million tons of coal per year into 4.8 million barrels of clean diesel and 2.5 million barrels of naphtha. Although COVID-19 precautions have delayed the project's scheduled kickoff by only a few months, at least two environmental organizations in southern Indiana, Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life and Valley Watch, are opposing the extension of a state air quality permit that would allow for construction.
Riverview's permit was set to expire next month, but the extension means construction must begin within 18 months of June 2022, according to Indiana University's Indiana Environmental Reporter. The environmental objections and several other issues surrounding permits indicate further delays to Riverview's project are very possible. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 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.
