May 17, 2012Schumer Continues Support for OxyCoal Project
Relentless Support - Sen. Schumer Reiterates Backing For BPU Project
by Jason Rodriguez
Courtesy The Post Journal
(For more pictures, go to the album.)
According to Charles Schumer, his mission to secure Jamestown's plan for an OxyCoal plant is undeterred.
The U.S. Senator from New York affirmed his unshaken resolve Friday when he arrived at the Board of Public Utilities on Steele Street for a special news conference followed by a walking tour of the Samuel Carlson Generating Station.
"We're here to talk about the future," Schumer said in his opening remarks. "Not only the future of Jamestown, but the future of America. And it could begin right here."
He said for two years he has fought to secure federal funding for Jamestown's OxyCoal project. After facing a series of disappointing decisions by the Department of Energy in favor of other methods of carbon capture and storage, Schumer said there is an "alternative pot" of funding which could be awarded to the local operation.
"There are lots of different thoughts going on," said Schumer. "And I think we ought to not limit ourselves to one or two, but we ought to try a whole bunch. The OxyCoal project would draw the eyes of the world to the southwest corner of New York state, with an innovative new way of capturing carbon dioxide that would be tested here.
"It would make Jamestown a magnet for companies experimenting in this type of technology, and there would be all kinds of secondary jobs - good-paying jobs."
A NEW PUSH
Jamestown would exist as the first approved OxyCoal project if it can secure funding from the Industrial Carbon Capture and Storage fund, said Schumer.
"We're not saying OxyCoal is the only way to go to bring clean technology to coal ... but to leave it out makes no sense. We're going to make a new push for funding. Working with my staff and the department of energy, there's an alternative pot of funding that we think could help support the OxyCoal demonstration project."
He said he is calling on the support of Energy Secretary Steven Chu to support this initiative. At the same time, Schumer noted the current interest of the DOE is to invest in a larger demonstration project with a capacity of 150 megawatts - three times the anticipated output of the local OxyCoal generator. But he hopes to use his influence to impact the prevailing mindset, and encourage the department to consider the only "shovel ready" project of its type.
Said Schumer: "I'll be asking the department of energy to come here, look at the plans, and understand that this is our best hope to test out OxyCoal technology. It is not a sure thing that we are going to get this money - it's an uphill fight."
"But because we are the best - the one that has the most experience - and no other OxyCoal has been funded, it gives us a real fighting chance," he added. "The only argument we have to make is doing a smaller one quicker is better than doing a large one that might not happen later. "
SCHUMER'S LONGTIME SUPPORT
In 2007 the BPU announced its proposal for a carbon capture and sequestration demonstration project. It formed an alliance with Praxair Inc., the largest industrial gas supplier in North America as well as a team of environmental study groups.
Following Gov. David Paterson's decision to pump more than $6 million for research into the Jamestown project in 2008, Schumer hailed the decision "a knockout win for both Western New York and the country."
The senator has been outspoken in his push for federal funding from the Department of Energy's "Clean Coal Power Initiative." The program is designed to support the development of technologies to reduce industrial carbon emissions, and exists as a parallel source of money to the current fund for which the senator is campaigning.
The proposed OxyCoal modification to the BPU generating station uses a particular process that burns coal in pure oxygen instead of air. This process leaves water and the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide which can be stored, or sequestered, underground for permanent storage.
At the 11th hour of the federal application process last August, Praxair announced a surprising switch of its "primary focus" to another OxyCoal project in Holland, Mich. The Jamestown project was delegated as an "alternate status site." However in the two days leading up to the DOE application deadline, the BPU and its remaining regional affiliates in the New York OxyCoal Alliance completed an independent application for funding.
In December 2009 the DOE denied the BPU in its request for federal support, and allocated $3.2 billion to three other research opportunities throughout the country.
"I think the Department of Energy has made a wrong-headed decision," Schumer said after the announcement. "We will work with Jamestown to pursue all other areas of funding."
In his first visit to the BPU facility since 2002, Schumer made good on his promise this week.
Currently there are at least a dozen sites around the nation in various phases of development for carbon capture technology, owing to DOE funding from either the CCPI or ICCS. However no OxyCoal project has received approval or financial support from the DOE.
Other technology advances include applying scrubs to flue gas to remove carbon dioxide from a power plant's emissions, as well as an "integrated gasification combined cycle" to convert blends of coal and petroleum to hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
At the close of the Friday's Schumer clarified the challenge: "Their objection is not OxyCoal, they want to fund larger projects to begin with."