The Glades County Commission gave its unanimous approval yesterday for construction of a coal burning plant by Florida Power and Light. The new coal fueled power plant planned for rural Glades County would provide electricity for about 635 thousand F-P-L Customers. FPL is the largest electric utility provider in Florida. Spokesman Grover Whidden says the decision to build a coal burning plant is the result advances in technology.
“So far it isn’t being used yet in the u.s. although there are several companies that have announced proposed projects that use this technology, but the technology is actually u..s technology which has been proven in japan and germany where they actually have these plants right in their metropolitan area.”
The plant is welcome in Glades County. County manager Wendell Taylor says its an economic boon.
“Its unlike anything we’ve ever experienced before. in fact its greater than all the things we’ve ever had before over here. it’s truly huge investment of two to three billion dollars and the taxable part will be about 2.6 billion dollars.”
Taylor says the Glades Power Park will also create about 180 good jobs. If the permitting process goes smoothly, ground breaking will be in 2008 and the plant will up and operating by 2013.
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Florida Power and Light got the go-ahead today (yesterday) from the Glades County Commission to build a coal operated power plant there. F-P-L spokesman Grover Whidden says the utility needs another plant to meet a growth in demand for electric energy in Florida. And he says at this juncture – coal is a good way to go.
byte: :43 companies are looking again at coal, because as you know it’s a very plentiful fossil fuel in the united states – we have very large reserves in this country – so its an opportunity you use our own domestic reserves and also there’s some reserves in this hemishphere in south America that are readily available and very economical
Whidden says the plant will be built with technology that makes burning coal cleaner. It will be the first power plant of its kind in the country. If all goes as planned it will operating by 2013, providing power an estimated 635 thousand F-P-L customers.