Dive Brief:
- Illinois utility Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) and retail electricity suppliers in the state have lost their appeal in the Illinois Appellate Court against the construction of the FutureGen 2.0 "clean coal" project.
- The plant, which plans to use carbon capture and storage technology, is projected to cost an estimated $1.7 billion. The project has $1 billion in federal funding while remaining costs would be met by a bill surcharge for all Illinois electricity customers.
- Under the ruling, Illinois utilities will have to charge their customers for FutureGen's construction, arguing it was unfair on ratepayers and that the Illinois Commerce Commission, which helped instate the project financing plan, overstepped its bounds.
Dive Insight:
ComEd parent company Exelon was initially part of the FutureGen Alliance, the group that is developing the plant, but left in 2013. The decision to impose a bill surcharge on all Illinois customers to pay for the plant prompted the utility and other suppliers, represented by the Illinois Competitive Energy Association (ICEA), to file their appeal. The ICEA says it is reviewing the latest decision and may decide to take the case to the state Supreme Court.
FutureGen plans to begin construction by the end of 2014 and to be online by the end of 2017.
