Pennsylvanians are getting a glimpse of the future of electricity generation as PP&L Global, Inc., announced Thursday (10/22) that it is developing a 500- to 600-megawatt power plant in eastern Pennsylvania, near the town of Martins Creek.
The natural gas-fired plant will be the third generating facility under development in the United States by PP&L Global, a subsidiary of PP&L Resources, Inc. William F. Hecht, chairman, president and chief executive officer of PP&L Resources, said the eastern Pennsylvania plant will be located adjacent to the site of a generating station already operated by PP&L, Inc., PP&L Resources' electric utility operation.
"Estimates show that there is a need for 6,000 megawatts of new electricity capacity in this region over the next decade," said Hecht, during the annual meeting of the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation Thursday. "This power plant will help meet that need in an environmentally friendly way.
"This will be a merchant plant, a facility that sells electricity on the wholesale market, where prices are set by supply and demand. This plant will contribute to the lower regional electricity prices that competition is expected to bring to customers," said Hecht. "This new facility will lead the way to a new era of electricity in Pennsylvania — one in which consumers bear none of the financial risks of building new facilities."
Hecht pointed out that construction of such plants, and the economic development benefits that come with them, is another important benefit of Pennsylvania's competitive electricity generation market.
"A competitive electricity generation market will lead to significant investment in the commonwealth over the next decade or so," said Hecht. "This is precisely the kind of long-term benefit that we envisioned when we whole-heartedly supported electricity competition in Pennsylvania."
As a merchant power plant, Hecht said, the new facility is expected to generate direct tax revenues for Northampton County, Lower Mount Bethel Township and the Bangor Area School District.
Hecht said that since the project will be located near an existing power plant site, there will be minimal aesthetic impact.
"Because this is a clean, modern power plant, there will be little or no effect on the neighbors of this already-operating facility. In this way, the electricity users of the region will get the advantages of more capacity without using additional land for such a purpose," said Hecht.
He said the facility, which is expected to go into service by early 2002, will cost an estimated $250 million. During operation, it is expected that 25 to 30 people will work at the facility. During construction — which, pending appropriate approvals, is expected to start in early 2000 — there are expected to be up to 350 workers at the site.
Hecht said that PP&L Global has briefed Lower Mount Bethel Township and Northampton County officials on the project and will be communicating with residents in the area of the Martins Creek site. "We look forward to working with the township, the county and area residents as this project progresses," said Hecht.
The project, he said, will bring additional investment — and jobs — to the township and the county. "PP&L Global's sister company, PP&L, Inc., has had an excellent relationship with the people of this area and PP&L Global looks forward to continuing that successful partnership," said Hecht.
The company also will be working with the Mid-Atlantic Area Council on electricity reliability and the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection to complete an assessment of the transmission needs associated with the new plant. Also, the company will work with the Environmental Protection Agency and environmental agencies from Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
PP&L Global also is developing a 525-megawatt power plant near Kingman, Ariz., and is in negotiations to develop a similar size plant in the town of Wallingford, Conn. The company, which was formed by PP&L Resources in 1995, also has ownership and operational interests in one of the United Kingdom's electric distribution companies and in one of Chile's largest electric companies. Based in Fairfax, Va., the company most recently has been focusing on acquiring generation facilities in the United States as changing regulations make the electricity generation market more competitive.
Just three weeks ago, PP&L Global announced that it was acquiring a number of power plants and transmission entitlements currently owned by Bangor Hydro in Maine. PP&L Global also has interests in El Salvador, Argentina, Peru, Spain, Portugal, Bolivia and Brazil.