Reuters reported that American Municipal Power Ohio Inc has chosen Bechtel Power Corporation to build a USD 3.25 billion, coal fired power plant capable of generating about 1,000 MW in Meigs County in southern Ohio.

AMI Ohio and Bechtel said that the station will help stabilize electric prices for the 81 municipal electric systems in Ohio, Michigan, Virginia and West Virginia that will receive power from the plant. The project will employ about 1,600 workers during the estimated four and a half year construction period. Once on line, it will employ 165 full time workers.

The project remains contingent upon receipt of final permits and successful negotiations of state and local incentives. It has already received air and discharge permits from the Ohio EPA and a certificate of need from the state sitting board.

Environmental and community groups are appealing the state EPA permits, though the company can continue to develop and construct the plant during the appeal process.

The plant will use Portsmouth, New Hampshire based Powerspan Corp's emission control technology, principally to control sulfur dioxide, mercury and particulate matter, but also possibly to capture carbon emissions in the future. Though the technology to capture carbon emissions does not exist yet, Powerspan was able to capture 90% of carbon emissions in the laboratory and a commercial pilot of the system is underway at First Energy Corporation's 525 MW RE Burger coal fired plant in eastern Ohio.

AMP Ohio, of Columbus, Ohio, owns and operates over 500 MW of generating capacity and supplies power to 126 municipal electric systems in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky.

(Sourced d from: Reuters)