Locals should question AMP-Ohio plan

Niles, Hubbard and Newton Falls are considering buying into American Municipal Power-Ohio’s proposed new 1,000 megawatt pulverized coal plant in Meigs County.

AMP-Ohio is a nonprofit wholesale power supplier for 120 municipal electric systems. This plant, expected to be in operation in 2013, is designed to use Powerspan Technology, which could reduce operation and maintenance by $4.5 million to $5.5 million per year, a savings that would be passed on to residents whose cities share in ownership.

However, the Trumbull County communities should examine this proposal thoroughly because it comes with risks. According to Ohio Citizen Action, a consumer watchdog group, the cost of electricity from AMP-Ohio’s proposed new plant could be as much as 40 percent to 50 percent higher than what AMP-Ohio has told officials Niles, Hubbard and Newton Falls.

Ohio Citizen Action bases this projection on a report produced by Scott Balice Strategies, a financial advisory firm in Chicago. The report takes what AMP-Ohio predicts will be the costs of construction, carbon regulation, coal purchase and financing and compares the figures to industry standards and utility expert forecasts. The firm projects, for example, higher construction costs, more costly emissions regulations, and greater demands for power than what AMP-Ohio predicts.

Another problem cited by Ohio Citizen Action is that when participants drop out, those remaining absorb the increased cost, up to 25 percent. Ohio Citizen Action also sites the report’s comment that the Powerspan technology used for AMP-Ohio’s project is unproven.

Without being an experienced power industry expert, it’s impossible to accurately guess who is correct. But considering Ohio Citizen Action’s history — it has long supported municipal power and even intervened to prevent FirstEnergy from taking over Cleveland Public Power nearly 30 years ago — the risk to local communities sounds like it is worth serious examination.