Kansas legislature passes renewable, coal power bill

The House passed the bill 103 to 18 today and the Senate voted 37 to 2 on May 7.

The bill now goes to Gov. Mark Parkinson, a democrat, who supports the renewable bill and a proposed 895-megawatt coal plant at Holcomb unlike his predecessor as governor, Kathleen Sebelius, who is now President Obama's Secretary of Health and Human Services.

In October 2007, Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) Secretary Rod Bremby rejected plans for two 700-MW coal-fired units in western Kansas at Holcomb. It was the first time a U.S. coal plant was rejected solely on the basis of health risks from carbon dioxide emissions.

Parkinson wasted little time in forging a compromise with Sunflower CEO Earl Watkins. He took office on April 28.

Sebelius vetoed four bills that would have allowed the expansion of Sunflower's Holcomb plant.

The cost of the new plant was not revealed. In early 2007, when three 700-MW units were proposed to be built at the existing 360-MW plant, the cost was near $4 billion.

Using an industry estimate of $2,100 per kilowatt, the 895 MW plant would cost about $1.9 billion.

Sunflower's Watkins has said construction could start on the plant in 12 to 18 months. Construction would take about four years.

Watkins said the compromise proposal meets the state's need for baseload power sources and also promotes renewable energy and fosters its growth in Kansas.

It also allows power from the Holcomb plant to be exported to electric cooperatives in Colorado and Texas. About 200 MW would remain in Kansas. Sebelius and other opponents to the Holcomb plant have said that Kansas got only part of the power but all of the CO2 emissions.

Sunflower said the Holcomb plant will be the cleanest available for coal power, but will still emit more CO2 than combined-cycle natural gas power plants.

A coal plant produces about twice the CO2 of a similar sized natural gas plant.

The company is also to create the Sunflower Integrated Bioenergy center, which will seek federal renewable energy stimulus funds for projects that could include ethanol, biodiesel, and algae energy plants.

The cooperatives involved are Tri-State Generation, which has most of its customers in Colorado, and Golden Spread Electric Cooperative, based in Amarillo in northern Texas.

(Reporting by Scott DiSavino and Bernie Woodall; Editing by Christian Wiessner)