'Renew Montville' Coalition Launches to Promote Biomass Energy Project

"Given the recent shutdown of the nearby AES facility, maintaining the viability of an electric generation facility within Montville is now of vital importance. The NRG facility has been a significant taxpayer within Montville and has continuously provided well-paying jobs and economic benefits to the region. The proposed biomass redevelopment of NRG’s Montville plant is an important part of the community’s financial future..." From renewmontville.org 

In its plan to shift to biomass, meaning that the plant would produce 40 megawatts of what the company describes as “clean, renewable power,” while bringing in increased property tax revenues, and, in the construction phase, add roughly 75 jobs. The fuel is clean wood biomass, which should improve emissions from the site, they said. The change would also allow NRG to get a top energy certification.

The project, several years in the making, needs the state to get on board, namely the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

Thursday it was announced that a consortium of business, civic and labor groups as well as local and state elected officials today launched a coalition to support the proposed biomass energy repowering project in Montville.

According to a media release, the coalition, RenewMontville.org urges the state to create a process that would result in a contract for the power from one of the generating units at NRG Energy Inc.’s Montville power plant, repowered to use clean wood biomass as fuel.

This fully-permitted project could be ready to begin construction in approximately six months, and offers a number of significant benefits to the city, region and state, including: 
• Delivers 40 megawatts of clean, renewable power 
• Ensures the long-term economic viability of the Montville power plant 
• Provides new, incremental property tax revenues 
• Creates approximately 200 long-term regional jobs in the forestry and logistics industries 
• Improves the emissions profile of the existing plant 
• Helps Connecticut meet its Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) requirement 
• Is the lowest-cost Class 1 renewable energy available in Connecticut

NRG Energy Inc., the owner of the Montville plant, proposes to convert an existing 82-megawatt (MW) oil- and natural gas fueled unit at the facility to used clean wood biomass as fuel. The converted unit would run most of the time at 40 MW as a so-called “baseload” unit, but if needed on especially hot or cold days could still be operated at its full 82 MW capacity on gas or ultra-low-sulfur diesel. The project has received its permits from the Connecticut Siting Council and Connecticut DEP (now DEEP) and could begin construction in approximately six months.

Under an off take contract, a utility such as UI, CL&P or CMEEC, as part of its ongoing energy procurement activity, would typically purchase the electrical output of the repowered unit for a certain number of years. However, the cost of repowering the plant, estimated at $100 million, would be borne by NRG alone, not by ratepayers or taxpayers.

Coalition members react

 “Repowering the plant represents an incredible opportunity to save and grow jobs, and make Connecticut an example of how renewables can work,” said Renew Montville.org chair Montville Mayor Ronald McDaniel.  “We’ve been fighting for the Montville Biomass repowering project for a long time, and it’s now within reach.” McDaniel said the coalition met with DEEP Commissioner Daniel P.  Esty and that he “indicated that he supports biomass repowering,” according to the release.  

“We need the region and in fact the entire state to get behind this, and let the governor and commissioner Esty know that this is the right project at the right time for Connecticut,” McDaniel said.

Coalition member State Representative Tom Reynolds said the project “supports our shared goals of creating Connecticut jobs and renewable energy for our state.”

“It will also go a long way toward helping the state meet its Renewable Portfolio Standard requirement and help us save on our energy costs,” Reynolds quote goes on to read.

AFL- CIO Connecticut President John Olsen was on hand at the ceremony Tuesday at the NGRG Montville plant, where the coalition web site was launched.

“The Montville Biomass Project will create needed construction and permanent jobs in Eastern Connecticut,” he said. “NRG has been a good employer in Connecticut and we applaud them for pursuing this project.”

Olsen joined members in making the case for the creation “of a process that would result in a contract with NRG to move this project forward this year.”

Check out the RenewMontville.org web site to find out more, get a list of members and news about the coalition and the proposed project.