Gas-powered electric plant approved in West Virginia; Supplying electricity to 1.8 million homes yearly

A siting certificate for a gas-turbine wholesale plant capable of supplying electricity to 1.8 million homes yearly was approved Monday by the Public Service Commission of West Virginia.

A Commission staff memo estimated the total investment in construction and the facilities in Doddridge County at $3.3 billion, providing up to 1,300 construction and 60 permanent jobs.

A public comment hearing for May 6 and evidentiary hearing for May 8-9 were canceled.

CPV Shay, LLC, of Braintree, MA, and organized in Delaware, filed a petition on December 1, 2023, for development of a wholesale electric generating facility and a high-voltage electric transmission line on 54 acres of a 230-acre parcel. The plant would be located at the unincorporated village of Blandville, 4 ½ miles southeast of West Union in Doddridge County

The application proposed a 2,060-megawatt natural gas-fired combined cycle gas turbine power-generating facility. The transmission system is a 9-mile, 500-kilovolt high-voltage line to run northeast to the Flint Run substation, which is owned by Monongahela Power Co.

The company said it would “deploy three advanced-class gas turbines, each with a high-efficiency secondary cycle steam turbine system.” It said the plant also may incorporate an integrated carbon capture facility to be operated as an affiliate of Shay.

“The applicant asserts that it is not a public utility providing service to the public in West Virginia and that the construction and operation of the combined facilities will not impact West Virginia ratepayers,” the application said. The power will be sent on the regional electricity grid for the wholesale market. Construction is to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025.

“West Virginia is pleased to welcome yet another business to our state,” PSC Chairman Charlotte R. Lane said.

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