By Paul Morden, The Observer
February 13, 2009
The second of two natural gas-fired power plants built in St. Clair Township is expected to be up and running by mid- March.
Susan Bennison, a spokesperson for Chicago-based Invenergy Development Company, said construction of the plant on Petrolia Line is entering its final stages. “We’re just going through the commissioning cycles, and the testing cycles,” she said, “and making sure everything is good to go before we begin selling power on the grid.”
The $479-million plant is designed to produce 580 megawatts of electricity.
Construction at the 30-acre site began last spring and was completed without any difficulties, Bennison said.
About 20 people will work there full-time once the plant is operational, she said.
The company received a 20-year Clean Energy Supply contract with the Ontario Power Authority, following a 2004 request the Ministry of Energy put out to the market, seeking new electricity generation in Ontario.
Bennison said the company also expects to begin work this summer on a wind generation project in Chatham-Kent.
In December, the gas-fired Greenfield Energy Centre was officially opened a 35- hectare site on Bickford Line near Courtright.
The 1,005-megawatt facility was a $700-million joint venture of U. S.-based Calpine power company and the Japanese group Mitsui.
The two natural gas-fired power plants were built in response to the Ontario government’s plan to close all remaining coal-fired plants, including the Lambton Generating Station, by 2014.
Observer Article ID# 1434302
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