DUSTIN BLEIZEFFER Star-Tribune energy reporter | Posted: Tuesday, April 17, 2007 12:00 am
Wyoming's largest electrical utility, Rocky Mountain Power, is the likely partner in a state-sponsored effort to launch a coal-gasification demonstration project.
The Wyoming Infrastructure Authority, which is spearheading the project, announced today it will conduct a special meeting on Wednesday to discuss a draft memorandum of understanding with Rocky Mountain Power, formerly PacifiCorp.
The intent of the project is to prepare a Wyoming-based project to win federal dollars yet to be committed under a section of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The act calls for a commercial-scale demonstration of an integrated gasification combined cycle, or IGCC, plant fueled by lower-rank Western coal.
The process presents an opportunity to capture and sequester carbon dioxide, the key greenhouse gas contributing to global warming.
Such a demonstration is considered key to expanding Wyoming's shovel-and-ship export of the raw coal commodity to more "value-added" processes of converting coal to electricity for export by wire thought to be a tenfold increase in value on a per-tonnage basis. That's the case-positive scenario.
Others see the demonstration of IGCC in Wyoming as a defense. With IGCC technology, Eastern coal may no longer be at a disadvantage to Wyoming's low-sulfur coal.
Rocky Mountain Power's IGCC proposal was included in a short list of two potential candidates. The other proposal, brought by Douglas-based Wyoming Gasification & Synfuels Co., includes a 100 percent carbon dioxide sequestration component.
Rocky Mountain Power's IGCC plant would be incorporated with its existing Jim Bridger plant near Point of Rocks in Sweetwater County, and would capture only a percentage of CO2 emissions.