The Bastards Win

[MikeBjerum]

Otter Tail Power Company announces withdrawal from Big Stone II

   Fergus Falls, Minnesota, September 11, 2009 Otter Tail Power Company today announced its withdrawal—both as a participating utility and as the project’s lead developer—from Big Stone II, a 500-to-600-megawatt coal-fired power plant proposed for near Milbank, South Dakota, with related transmission upgrades in South Dakota and Minnesota.
According to Otter Tail Power Company President and CEO Chuck MacFarlane, the broad economic downturn coupled with a high level of uncertainty associated with proposed federal climate legislation and existing federal environmental regulation have resulted in challenging credit and equity markets that make proceeding with Big Stone II at this time untenable for Otter Tail’s customers and shareholders.
MacFarlane explained that Big Stone II contractual agreements require a commitment to proceed after the project receives all major permits, creating a financial obligation on each party that agrees to go forward. “Each Big Stone II participant is in a different position in terms of means and impact of raising capital and mechanisms for recovering those costs from customers,” he said. “Given the legislative and regulatory uncertainties and current economic conditions, Otter Tail Power Company is unwilling to create a binding financial obligation of approximately $400 million for its share of the project at this time.”
Big Stone II had been scheduled to be on line in 2011, and now the plant would not begin operating until late 2015 at the earliest. MacFarlane said that the company no longer could delay the project to obtain greater clarity on—and to mitigate—risks unique to Otter Tail. Accordingly, Otter Tail chose to withdraw and allow the others to proceed. “We believe the project is important for the region, both in terms of adding baseload power and enhancing regional reliability,” MacFarlane said.
While Otter Tail Power Company has invested more than $300 million in wind energy generation during the last three years, MacFarlane added that dispatchable generation remains an important need for Otter Tail Power Company’s customers. As a result, over the next three to six months, Otter Tail Power Company will continue to evaluate other options to meet its customers’ need for reliable electricity.
MacFarlane also expressed his company’s gratitude for the backing shown for the project. “Our company appreciates the support that customers, regulators, labor, business leaders, and political leadership have shown the project. We especially thank South Dakota elected officials and communities within the plant’s vicinity for their commitment,” he said.
Otter Tail Power Company, a subsidiary of Otter Tail Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select Market: OTTR), is headquartered in Fergus Falls, Minnesota. It provides electricity and energy services to more than a quarter million people in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. To learn more about Otter Tail Power Company visit www.otpco.com. To learn more about Otter Tail Corporation visit www.ottertail.com.
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This is a project that has been approved by the federal governement and the state of South Dakota (where the existing plant and this expansion are located).  However, Sierra Club and others have cost us so much in time and money through legal challanges that we are losing our future power needs and the infrastructure the very opponents want to carry the green power from wind.  Millions in wasted dollars that consumers will now pay without promise of power.

This is how the anti's will stop anything they want to stop.  Oil your guns boys and girls, because they may be needed!

[Pathfinder]

Damn. There go my rates again! 

[MikeBjerum]

While trapped in the airport today I made some calls to "experts" that we give lots of money to to make this happen for insight.  It doesn't look rosey.  There are pleanty of people to buy the power and add the investment that Ottertail leaves behind.  However, it looks like all the permits could be challenged in court due to the major player and developer changing.

A lot of people that need this power and have invested a lot of money to get to this point are scratching heads.

What does this have to do with a gun forum?  Nothing directly.  But look at what is going on and how it is happening, because this is how the anti's could develope cracks in us and the Second Amendment to destroy our Constitution.

[Johnny Bravo]

While trapped in the airport today I made some calls to "experts" that we give lots of money to to make this happen for insight.  It doesn't look rosey.  There are pleanty of people to buy the power and add the investment that Ottertail leaves behind.  However, it looks like all the permits could be challenged in court due to the major player and developer changing.

A lot of people that need this power and have invested a lot of money to get to this point are scratching heads.

What does this have to do with a gun forum?  Nothing directly.  But look at what is going on and how it is happening, because this is how the anti's could develope cracks in us and the Second Amendment to destroy our Constitution.

Tell us more if you can.

[MikeBjerum]

There is currently a coal fired power plant on Big Stone Lake in South Dakota on the Minnesota/South Dakota border.  The permits received from both federal and state were to build a second plant, and to update and remodel the existing plant.  The result would be doubling the power output and increasing polution a very minimal amount over the current plant (the result of new technology for efficiency and cleanliness being used in both the retrofit of the esisting and in construction of the new).

More than twice the power with negligable increase in "greenhouse" and other emissions.  Sounded like a good deal to us.
The "tree huggers could not stop the plant on either the federal or South Dakota permits, so they attacked in Minnesota.  What they did was work through the Public Utility Commission (PUC) trying to show there was no need for the power lines that were a part of this project.  They wanted the lines for the wind that is going in all over western Minnesota, so they fought to keep the lines from crossing into South Dakota.

The straw that actully took Ottertail out of the picture was that the PUC ruled that the added costs associated with new agreements for abating pollution could not be passed on to the consumers.  Most of the rest of us as utilities could include it as a cost of production (or true wholesale cost) and charge accordingly.  However, Ottertail was restricted to what they could charge or pass on.

This ruling was in affect saying that this plant and transmission has a three cent per kilowatt wholesale cost delivered to the utility, but since one cent of this is for abatement agreements on pollution you can only mark up based on a two cent cost.  This actully set up a situation where the utility could not mark up the power at all.

To put this in terms that many of us could understand, and bites Haz in the shorts, it is like telling Haz that his truckers can only charge for fuel, oil changes and tires.  However, they can not charge for wear and tear on the tractor, because it was purchased special to reduce both fuel consumption and emissions.

The most recent attack on the Second Amendment that mirrors this move is the OSHA situation of a couple years ago.

[Sponsor]

[Ping]

Not good at all!!!!!!!!!!