LETART FALLS — American Municipal Power-Ohio’s (AMP-Ohio) American Municipal Power Generating Station (AMPGS) power plant proposed for Letart Falls continues to move forward according to AMP-Ohio officials and Rep. Jimmy Stewart (R-Meigs) who this week visited the company’s headquarters in Columbus.

Stewart described the AMPGS plant as, “Probably the largest capital investment ever made in the history of Meigs County.”

At this point the plant is expected to cost between $1.5 and $2 billion due to the increase in construction costs.

“I felt it was important as a local official and Meigs County resident that I keep a good, open relationship with their executives and decision makers,” Stewart said of the reason for his visit.

While at AMP-Ohio headquarters Stewart said time lines and the permitting process were discussed. According to Kent D. Carson, director of member relations for AMP-Ohio, the company remains entrenched in the permitting process, preparing to file with the Ohio Siting Board in February. AMP-Ohio has already filed an air permit to install with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the initial application for transmission interconnection with the PJM which is currently in its second phase of the three phase assessment.

Stewart said also discussed was AMP-Ohio’s plans to use the Powerspan carbon dioxide capture process, a multi-pollutant control technology capable of producing a “valuable” fertilizer co-product instead of synthetic gypsum produced from traditional limestone scrubbing technologies.

“It was my understanding they are in negotiations with folks who will supply some of the material that will be used as well as people who will purchase the end product,” Stewart said of the fertilizer product.

When discussing the product of coal, Carson said AMP-Ohio has not spoken with representatives from Gatling Ohio, LLC which filed a mining permit with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources last November to mine coal just outside of Racine.

“What we’ve said all along is we envision using a fuel blend that includes some Ohio coal,” Carson said. “We won’t be able to burn 100 percent Ohio coal and meet our permit standards but our plans are at this point to use some Ohio coal.”

Carson added it could be late 2008, early 2009 before any actual construction begins at the site. Right now cultural surveying is happening at the site and Carson said so far nothing has turned up that would indicate there were historical or cultural issues with the property.

Stewart said he felt AMP-Ohio was standing behind the project in Letart Falls and he intended to help them in anyway he could to further the project along. AMP-Ohio estimates the AMPGS plant will go online in 2012 with the plant’s second unit going online in 2013. Of course all these dates hinge on the ongoing permitting process.