BAY CITY, Mich., Sept. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Consumers Energy has selected
its Karn/Weadock Generating Complex near Bay City as the site for
construction of an 800-megawatt clean coal power plant, the start of a new
generation of power for Michigan, top utility executives announced today.
The utility's plans call for 500 megawatts of the plant's output to be
used to help serve its 1.8 million electric customers with 300 megawatts
going to other owners. A number of municipal utilities in Michigan have
expressed interest in becoming part owners of the new plant, however, no
formal agreements have been reached with potential participants.
The new plant is expected to cost in excess of $2 billion and Consumers
Energy's share of that cost will be in proportion to its ownership
interest. The plant is expected to be in operation in 2015.
"Consumers Energy has selected the Karn/Weadock Generating Complex to
be the site of a new clean coal power plant to serve the growing electric
needs of Michigan families and businesses in the 21st century," said David
Joos, the president and chief executive officer of CMS Energy, the parent
company of Consumers Energy.
"Customer demand for electricity is growing at a steady pace in
Michigan. To help meet that growing demand, Consumers Energy plans to
double the amount of electricity from renewable sources that we supply to
customers to 10 percent from 5 percent today. We're also working on ways to
help customers lower the demand for power through new energy efficiency and
demand management programs, which will help lower overall power costs,"
Joos said.
"Even with increased use of energy efficiency, demand management, and
expanding renewable energy resources, our customers and Michigan still will
need new power plants. The state of Michigan's 21st Century Energy Plan
makes clear the need for 5,000 megawatts of new baseload power plants to
meet the growing electric needs of customers in our state between 2015 and
2025."
Using a variety of options to meet the growing customer demand for
electricity is captured in the company's Balanced Energy Initiative, a
comprehensive 20-year plan developed by Consumers Energy in response to the
state's 21st Century Energy Plan.
The new power plant announced today will bring significant economic
development benefits to the Bay County area and Michigan. Building the
plant is expected to create nearly 1,800 jobs at the peak of construction,
then at least 80 ongoing jobs after the plant begins operation. It also
will provide a significant boost to the local tax base and area businesses.
The new plant will use proven state-of-the-art technology in all
aspects of its operations, including the latest and best available
technology to minimize environmental impacts.
Consumers Energy selected an advanced supercritical pulverized coal
design that will provide the best overall balance in performance,
reliability, lower emissions, and cost.
John Russell, the president and chief operating officer of Consumers
Energy, said the Karn/Weadock Generating Complex was selected as the site
of the new plant because of a number of factors, including the ability to
ship in coal by rail or water, the proximity to customer load, and the size
of the 1,000-acre site, which is large enough to add a new plant and still
have the potential for a second new unit.
"The Consumers Energy operations at the Karn/Weadock site began nearly
70 years ago. Karn/Weadock and its employees are part of this community,
and we're pleased that we're known as a good neighbor as well as being
designated a Clean Corporate Citizen by the Michigan Department of
Environmental Quality. We're looking forward to continuing our
relationships as we work together on this new plant," Russell said.
Joos and Russell noted that selecting a site for the new plant was only
a single step in the process of building a new plant and there are several
key hurdles that must be cleared before Consumers Energy can move forward
with the new clean coal plant.
They identified those as:
-- Repeal or significant reform of the state's electric deregulation law
so the state has an energy policy that will allow new power plants to
be financed and built
-- Obtaining environmental permits for the plant
-- Successful Michigan Public Service Commission regulatory review and
approval of Consumers Energy's plan for the new plant
-- Obtaining property tax abatements for the new plant
"The 21st Century Energy Plan recognizes that legislative and
regulatory changes are necessary so the new power plants needed to serve
the growing customer demand for electricity in Michigan can be financed and
built," Russell said.
In other states, deregulated markets led to significantly higher and
more volatile electric prices for customers, Russell said, adding that a
number of states have ended their experiments in deregulation to provide
for market stability needed to allow investments in power plants to move
forward.
"Our customers are using 8 percent more electricity today than they
were a decade ago, and the demand continues to grow. We need to invest in
new, clean, efficient generation to meet those needs. If we don't, our
customers will be exposed to higher, more volatile electricity market
prices and lower reliability. In addition, new generation developed in
Michigan means needed investment and jobs here rather than in other
states," Russell said.
Russell said Consumers Energy plans to file the second part of its
Balanced Energy Initiative with the Michigan Public Service Commission on
Sept. 21. That filing will outline the company's plans for construction of
the new plant and start the regulatory review process for the plant.
This fall, the utility also plans to file an application with the
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for the air emissions permits
required for the new plant.
Consumers Energy, the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS),
provides natural gas and electricity to nearly 6.5 million of Michigan's 10
million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.
For more information about Consumers Energy, visit our Website at
http://www.consumersenergy.com
SOURCE Consumers Energy
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CONTACT:
Media, Jeff Holyfield, +1-517-788-2394, Dan
Bishop, +1-517-788-2395, Kelly Farr +1-989-891-3451, or
Investment Analysts, CMS Energy Investor Relations,
+1-517-788-2590, all for Consumers Energy
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