Taking a risk

By The Standard Staff - 05/24/2006

It’s refreshing to see Butte-Silver Bow thinking big. And, big is what a proposed coal-fired energy plant west of town is.

Butte is looking to contract with an analyst to study the feasibility of such a plant. The plant will serve the Renewable Energy Corp. (the former ASiMI) and Montana Resources copper mine operation and other large energy users.

The idea has some merit, but is loaded with expense and risk.

Continental Energy once attempted to build a gas-fired plant at the same site, west of Butte. Continental ran into conflicts with the environmentalists, construction costs and the escalating price of gas, so it pulled up stakes and left for the Portland, Ore., area.

Coal-fired plants are not going to escape the environmental radar either.

Great Falls is struggling with a $515 million coal-fired plant. Local residents are gathering signatures against the plant.

In Roundup, a twin, 390-megawatt coal-fired plant has been in the planning stages for five years. It has an air quality permit, but that’s about all. It is also mulling converting the plant to a coal liquification plant — a favorite of Gov. Brian Schweitzer — but that would send the company back to the state for yet another permit.

The Basin Creek gas-fired utility plant is online south of Butte and is going to dedicate its plant on June 21. This plant has a contract with NorthWestern and used for peak demand for energy.

That plant also had to jump through hoops to get up and running. But, the plant is a success story.

It appears that there is a small undercurrent across the state for cities to launch their own source of energy development. It may be that in light of the failed attempt to buy NorthWestern Energy by Montana Public Power Inc. — a consortium of five cities to have public power — the individual cities are now looking at having control of the source of power instead. In light of the recent FERC ruling that Montana PPL can sell its generated power at market price, some cities are squirming about another jump in power prices next winter.

A stable source of electricity is just the ticket for keeping current industries and luring others to Butte. Montana Resources shut down in 2000 in part, due to an electrical contract that put profits out of reach.

The silicon plant pays about $1 million a month — before last winter’s rate increases — to operate. Cost of energy is the key to keeping this plant from moving to Washington, where energy is cheaper.

There’s also abundant water available at the industrial park west of Butte.

And, as Butte folks know, there’s abundant wind for a wind farm west of Butte.

Thinking big is just what Butte needs. But a dash of caution is needed. Perhaps a combination of coal, gas, hydro and wind energy would be the ticket for a successful plant.

We look forward to the progress of this idea.