Corporation Commission rejects Coal Plant

[cannon_fodder]

Meachum was quoted as saying this was a decision affecting a $1,000,000,000.00 business deal and construction project in the state of Oklahoma.  Coupled with the pollution issues and power generation that may attract/preclude future development he felt it was appropriate for his office to get involved.

Something along those lines anyway.

[Transport_Oklahoma]

Compromise proposal:

For the next decade or so, the state's utilities buy any power they can't generate with their own facilities from the underutilized third party natural gas plants.

The intervening time is used to build a nuclear plant(s).

Chesapeake is correct that Oklahoma still has vast natural gas resources.  But it is continent wide market, and America is no longer self sufficient in gas.  In fact Canada can't be relied upon either.  Partly because they are using so much of their gas resources processing the Athabasca oil sands.

So the energy industry has been trying to site LNG (Liquified Natural Gas) import stations along the coasts.

Overreliance on natural gas as a long term solution for Oklahoma will guarantee higher electric bills.

[Townsend]

Order Denies Advanced Funding For Coal-Fired Plant  
Thursday October 11, 2007 11:53 am  

 


Oklahoma City (AP) - State regulators have issued a final order denying a request by utility companies to raise customer rates to pay for construction costs of a proposed coal-fired power plant in northern Oklahoma.




Corporation Commissioner Chairman Jeff Cloud and Commissioner Jim Roth signed the order. Commissioner Bob Anthony, who voted last month against the denial, signed a separate order.

Anthony believes the proposed $1.8 billion coal-fired plant may be cheaper for ratepayers over time and would use new technology to reduce emissions.

Cloud says lengthy hearings determined that Public Service Company of Oklahoma and Oklahoma Gas & Electric Co. will need more generating capacity by the year 2012.

But he says the companies did not present enough evidence that other alternatives for generating electricity were fully explored.

Thursday's order calls on the companies to explore new energy efficiency programs with customers to slow the demand for electricity in the state.


http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/1007/462968.html