Lubbock Leaders Look at Odessa Gas Plants for Future Energy
By: Tim Barber, everythinglubbock.com
Updated: February 23, 2011
LUBBOCK -- Folks from the West Texas Municipal Power Agency listened to a presentation from people persuading them to purchase two gas plants near Odessa. The cost is more than 520-million dollars, which High Plains Diversified Energy tells us will come from bonds.
High Planes warns that if we don't buy the plants soon interest rates will go back up and it will cost more. Extra power is another issue.
WTMPA only use 500-megawatts of energy, so with the two plants we would have to sell off more than 1,000 megawatts. High Plains chairman Scott Collier says that's not a problem.
"We are going to have firm purchase power contracts with off-takers before we finance this project," said Collier. "Gas is readably available here in our region and you can fire up that gas plant at anytime," he added.
If WTMPA decides to buy the two gas plants, transmission lines would have to be put up to get the energy from Odessa to West Texas. Collier says buying the existing plants would still be cheaper than building new ones.
High Planes warns that if we don't buy the plants soon interest rates will go back up and it will cost more. Extra power is another issue.
WTMPA only use 500-megawatts of energy, so with the two plants we would have to sell off more than 1,000 megawatts. High Plains chairman Scott Collier says that's not a problem.
"We are going to have firm purchase power contracts with off-takers before we finance this project," said Collier. "Gas is readably available here in our region and you can fire up that gas plant at anytime," he added.
If WTMPA decides to buy the two gas plants, transmission lines would have to be put up to get the energy from Odessa to West Texas. Collier says buying the existing plants would still be cheaper than building new ones.
