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efforts like refinery expansions - are not
competitive or conducive to attracting these projects.
"We don't want to run companies away," said Clayborne. "If there's a way to
expedite the permitting process on these types of huge investments, such as
ConocoPhillips' CORE project (in Roxana) in a way that satisfies both
industry and the environmentalists, we need to do it."
Removing the moratorium on nuclear power plant construction in Illinois is
also a provision of SB 1823. Illinois adopted the prohibition back in the
early 1980s, after the near disaster in 1979 at Three-Mile Island in
Pennsylvania. But 30 years have passed since then; and legislators here,
including Clayborne, say the ban should be lifted because nuclear reactors
can provide extensive, inexpensive energy.
"With few new coal plants coming online, the country is heading toward a
power shortage," Clayborne said. "As important as wind and solar power are,
they alone will not provide for all our future energy needs. This
legislation addresses incentives for both alternative and traditional energy
sources. My bill is designed to try to create a mechanism in different
segments of the energy industry to make Illinois a little more friendly, and
to attract companies to look at it," he added.
It took ConocoPhillips nearly three years to complete the permitting process
to begin its nearly $4 billion processing expansion, Clayborne says, and
that's not a competitive timetable when compared to other parts of the
country.
"We're also looking at ways to give companies incentives, in the form of tax
credits, for the purchase of certain equipment that is used at the (new)
facility," he said. "SB 1823 seeks to create a template that positions
Illinois as energy-friendly, in terms of drawing these types of major
investments here."
Sen. Kyle McCarter (R-Decatur), one of thebill's co-sponsors, says encouraging carbon capture and sequestration - a
process that will be used at the $3.6 billion Prairie State Energy Campus in
Washington County, which will be the country's largest coal-fired power
plant - is an example of an initiative that the state
needs to be
encouraging via incentives.
"ADM (Archer Daniels Midland Co.) just |
began a joint venture with another
company to engage in this process," said McCarter. "They're taking carbon
dioxide, the byproduct of their manufacturing operation, and liquefying it
and pumping it into a deep well, storing it in the strata of the earth. It's
important for the state of Illinois to support major investments like this.
We've got to remain competitive to keep it here."
Todd Maisch, vice president of government affairs for the Illinois Chamber
of Commerce, says the chamber wrote SB 1823 because it is committed to
making the most of Illinois' energy investment opportunities.
"The basic premise of this bill is that Illinois has a lot of unique energy
assets, and it should be our public policy to look for a way to use those
assets to maximize job potential," Maisch said, noting that Illinois' energy
base includes one of the largest coal reserves in the world. "Opening new
coal mines, building new wind farms and investing in smart grid technology -
bringing it to Illinois - is what we need to be doing. SB 1823 embraces all
sources of energy, not just alternative sources, because the demands of
energy are growing in such a way that you can't just rely on one or the
other."
Illinois also boasts its uniqueness in having the most nuclear generating
plants of any state, according to Maisch. Its convergence of natural gas and
crude oil pipelines, five area oil refineries, farmland for biofuels and
ample wind for electrical generation also contributes to its position as
rich in energy investment opportunities.
Maisch says the subject of jobs creation isn't rising to the surface enough
in the Springfield rotunda. "In the legislative session, there's an awful
lot of talk about the budget deficit, but not nearly enough discussion about
jobs creation...and that's what this bill would do," he said. "At the end of
the day, the state's lack of jobs creation is at the root of our problems."
SB
1823 also proposes tax credits to companies who improve their energy
production at existing facilities.
president/ceo: Kerry L. Smith
email: ksmith@ibjonline.com |
