Posted: 6:10 p.m.
Thursday, March 19, 2015
COMPLETE COVERAGE
Middletown expects influx of tax
revenue from power plant construction
By Chelsey Levingston and Ed Richter
Staff Writer
MIDDLETOWN —
The city of Middletown expects to get a one-time boost of
approximately $420,000 in income tax revenues over a three-year period from the
construction of a new natural-gas fired power plant here, according to a city
staff report.
Construction should take three years and
the city could start collecting as soon as June, assuming the project by
Florida-based NTE Energy LLC meets all regulatory approvals and starts
construction as planned.
The influx of cash could be spent on
improving roads and other infrastructure, City Manager Doug Adkins told the
Ohio Power Siting Board last fall during a public hearing for the project.
“Our hope is to take the benefits of this
project, which will be a one-time large influx of income tax dollars for the
city, pool it with the fact that our schools are now in the process of
developing two to three new schools, which will expand again our source of
one-time revenues, and use that strategically with our new plans to develop
infrastructure,” Adkins said last October.
Projections are that the equivalent of 200
full-time temporary construction jobs will be created in the city as a result
of the approximately $500 million power plant build. Those jobs will generate a
total payroll of about $24 million between this summer and the power plant’s
opening in 2018. Estimates call for the creation of 300 to 400 total jobs for
people including full- and part-time work at a peak.
Once built, the power plant will hire about
25 permanent employees for ongoing operations and maintenance. Those workers
will generate about $2.2 million in new annual payroll, generating an
additional $36,500 a year in revenues for city coffers, according to the staff
report prepared for city council.
Extra details are coming in about the power
plant’s impact as city government considers whether or not to approve a
financial incentive package for NTE Energy’s investment.
City Council at its meeting Tuesday
discussed offering the company a 75 percent, 10-year property tax abatement
under the Enterprise Zone program.
NTE could also qualify for a “large user”
discount on a water and service agreement with the city, according to
Middletown Economic Development Director Denise Hamet. The NTE Energy power
plant would consume 2.21 million gallons of water a day, which would make it
the city’s largest water user, according to city records.
Middletown City Council on Tuesday gave
first readings on the two ordinances — the water and service agreement and the
the property tax abatement — but because the city did not provide ample notice
to the schools, council could not adopt the legislation. A special meeting for
the purpose of approving both ordinances has been set for 7:30 a.m. March 27 at
the City Building,
at One Donham Plaza.
Plans were first announced last year to
build the power plant in Middletown,
and later those plans easily passed several key regulatory approvals from Ohio
Environmental Protection Agency and Ohio Power Siting Board.
If
everything moves forward, NTE Energy of St. Augustine, Fla., plans to start
construction this year and open in 2018, producing more than 500 megawatts of
electric power year-round. The power plant could be built near the intersection
of Cincinnati-Dayton and Oxford
State roads.
It would provide a cleaner source of energy
to the region’s electricity supplies, company executives previously said.
So
far, NTE Energy has: received an air permit from Ohio Environmental Protection
Agency; received a Certificate of Environmental
Compatibility and Public Need from the Ohio Power Siting Board to construct an
electric generating facility; received approval of its application to Ohio
Power Siting Board for Middletown Energy Center’s electrical interconnection;
and completed the Feasibility Study and System Impact Study of PJM’s three-part
study process, looking at the project’s ability to interconnect to the electric
system, according to the company.
PJM Interconnection operates the region’s
transmission grid and serves 61 million people in 13 states, including Ohio and the District
of Columbia.
Before NTE Energy can start construction,
it must still: complete the Facilities Study with PJM; finalize the project’s
financing; and once the financing closes, the general contractor will complete
its design of the power plant and obtain the remaining approvals from the city
to start construction.
“The project is progressing very well and
following the completion of the financing process, construction of the facility
is on schedule to start this summer,” said Michael Schuster, project developer
for NTE Energy.
CONTINUING COVERAGE
Since
plans were revealed proposing to build a power plant in Middletown, this newspaper has provided
in-depth coverage on the topic
Jan. 2014:$500M natural gas plant planned
for Middletown
Jan. 2014:Power plant not a done deal for
Middletown
Feb. 2014:Energy plant to bring jobs,
revenue to region
Feb. 2014:Pending Supreme Court decision
has implications for Middletown plant
Feb. 2014:Duke Energy to sell Midwest
power generation business
March 2014:Potential for six power plants
to operate in Butler County
March 2014:Hamilton hydroelectric power
plant, Ohio River’s largest, nears completion
March 2014:Hamilton’s massive
hydroelectric plant impresses city leaders
April 2014:Middletown power plant project
progressing
Oct. 2014:Natural gas development in
Butler County brings risks, rewards
Oct. 2014:Middletown power plant project
called a “game-changer” for region
Nov. 2014:Final air permit approved for
Middletown power plant project