FutureGen Construction Begins; But Financing, Other Challenges Remain

"Construction has begun on the stalled FutureGen 2.0 carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project in western Illinois, according to project officials, but major hurdles remain for the $1.65 billion first-of-its-kind power plant.

Installation of the first foundation piling meets an Aug. 31 start-construction deadline required by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Kim Biggs, a spokeswoman for the agency, told Bloomberg BNA in an e-mail Aug. 28.

The work represents a victory for the project, which involves retrofitting one boiler in a nearly 50-year-old coal plant owned by Ameren Corp. to capture roughly 90 percent of its carbon dioxide emissions."

Ari Natter reports for Bloomberg BNA September 2, 2014.