OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Durbin, Obama and Costello Praise Selection of Two Sites in Illinois as Contenders for FutureGen

Date: July 25, 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Energy


DURBIN, OBAMA AND COSTELLO PRAISE SELECTION OF TWO SITES IN ILLINOIS AS CONTENDERS FOR FUTUREGEN

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Barack Obama (D-IL) and Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL) today praised the decision of the U.S. Department of Energy to include two sites in downstate Illinois as contenders for the location of a $1 billion, first-of-a-kind, near-zero emissions coal-fueled power plant known as FutureGen.

The Department of Energy today selected two Illinois communities - Mattoon and Tuscola - to move forward to the next step of the selection process. Sites were evaluated on criteria ranging from the size of the site to the site's access to transportation routes to the site's proximity to geographically well-suited areas. Since April, teams of renowned U.S. and international scientists have reviewed the proposals from 12 communities vying for the FutureGen project.

FutureGen is a $1 billion government-industry project which will produce the first emissions-free coal generation plant of its kind. The Department of Energy developed a short list of the most qualified states earlier this year, and are expected to make a final site selection in mid- to late- 2007.

"FutureGen is the number one federal energy project for downstate Illinois, an area that has the coal and the commitment needed to make it a reality," said Durbin. "Finding cleaner ways to generate power using coal will help ensure our country's energy security and address global warming. I have been working closely with Senator Obama and Representative Costello to bring this project to Illinois. I was pleased to see that two of our downstate communities were selected to continue in the next critical stage of this project. Today's announcement is a testament to the work of local officials and community leaders in Mattoon and Tuscola, and we will continue to work with them to make this effort a success."

http://durbin.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=259395&&

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