Updated: $1.1B Power Plant to Be Built in Wellsville

WELLSVILLE, Ohio — South Field Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Advanced Power, announced plans today to build a $1.1 billion, 1,100-megawatt natural gas electric generating plant in Columbiana County.

The plant is Boston-based Advanced Power’s second such project in northeastern Ohio, the company said. It will generate electricity for the delivery and sale to the interstate transmission grid.

The plant will be built in Yellow Creek Township, about 3 miles from Wellsville, on a 150-acre parcel set back 3,500 feet from Route 45. It will produce 1,000 megawatts, enough to power more than 1 million households and will use General Electric turbine technology. Bechtel, which is constructing the Carroll County Energy project, will serve as general contractor on the project.

Similar to the company’s Carroll County energy plant under construction near Carrollton, the $1.1 billion project here is expected to create up to 550 construction jobs over two to three years. Once operating, the plant will have 25 full-time employees in engineering, technical, operation, management and administrative positions.

“Ohioans face a growing gap in energy production,” said Jonathan Winslow, senior vice president for development at Advanced Power, in a prepared statement. “With facilities like this, we can begin to close that gap by using advanced technology to produce substantial, reliable power, while also minimizing our environmental footprint.”

Advanced Power is in the process of completing environmental studies and will seek the necessary permits for the South Field Energy project. The company plans to seek an enterprise zone tax abatement agreement as well, Winslow said.

The plant’s combined cycle design will produce electricity efficiently, capturing heat to generate additional electricity in the steam turbine, the company said.

In addition to natural gas, the plant may also use ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel during periods when natural gas is not available. It will utilize efficient cooling technology to minimize water consumption and wastewater discharge.

A pre-application notification letter to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, dated Oct. 5, states a public informational meeting will be held at  6 p.m. Oct. 20 at Wellsville High School.

The letter, from a Columbus attorney representing South Field Energy, says the company anticipates it will seek the waiver of two rules regarding construction of the electric generating facility.

The first request would waive an extensive site selection study.

“The applicant will provide discussion of its site selection process and the key attributes met by selecting the site,” writes attorney Michael J. Settineri.

“The facility has a footprint of approximately 20 acres and will be located within 150 acres of privately owned land, which is adjacent to a roughly 20-acre site available for construction staging and laydown,” he states.

The second waiver deals with filing PJM system impact studies along with the application, the letter states.

PJM is the electrical power grid.

Pictured: Rendering of South Field Energy’s power plant it plans to build in Wellsville.

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