Courting Peabody

It seems as if everybody wants Peabody Energy's $3 billion coal gasification plant--and Peabody wants incentives, among other basic logistical considerations. The St. Louis-based company is considering locations in Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky to build a joint coal-to-natural-gas plant with ConocoPhillips. Apparently, executives at the company promised to recommend Kentucky sites if lawmakers approve tax breaks over $300 million. The governor of Kentucky wants to hold a special legislative session on Monday to approve the incentive package.

Peabody as said that they are looking for a location in the Midwest with large reserves and an existing infrastructure, that would be designed to produce between 50 billion to 70 billion cubic-feet of pipeline quality natural gas from 3.5 million tons of Midwest coal. Peabody is the world's largest private-sector coal company, fueling 10% of all U.S. electricity generation and more than 2% worldwide.


Sources: Forbes, CNN, Peabody