The power plant that helped Sen. Joe Manchin make millions tried to pivot to mining criptocurrency but was denied by West Virginia officials. Say that three times fast.
The Grant Town Power Plant is located in northeast West Virginia and is powered by waste rock generated as a result of coal mining. The waste can still be used for fuel despite being dirtier than coal. The coal waste resale company owned by Manchin buys most of the gob from the Grant Town plant.
Grant Town is a top buyer. It was the only buyer of coal waste from Enersystems between 2008 and 2019. Manchin and his wife earned almost half a million dollars from sales to the Grant Town plant in 2020. They have made $5 million since Manchin entered the Senate.
The plant is in financial trouble. Burning gob is more expensive than using other forms of fuel because it is labor-intensive and the waste is costly to dispose of. The plant said it had enough money to keep running and pay its staff, but it couldn't afford to upgrade.
E&E News reported last year that the owners of the plant were trying to save Grant Town by using cheaper fuel. The owners of Grant Town put a proposal before the Public Service Commission of West Virginia to buy out the plant's power purchase contract in order to potentially attract more miners. At a time when the U.S. is moving quickly into the world ofcryptocurrencies, they have sometimes acted as a customer of last resort for struggling power plants. Nuclear plants as well as natural gas peaker plants add to the carbon footprint of the mining industry. E&E reported that a successful switch could have kept the plant in business.
The proposal was denied by the Public Service Commission because it was too high. The PSC said that the region is already facing a power shortage. The PSC said that buying Grant Town out of its contract could force the plant to close. Consumers may have to pay for any extra capacity utilities may have to bring online if the plant stays open. The PSC was concerned about the jobs that would be lost if the plant closed.
Grant Town will be seen what happens. It seems that it is headed into a pre-bankruptcy twilight that hit many coal-fired power plants, unable to turn to other sources for possible funding, burning dirty, expensive fuel that it remains tied to, and raising rates for customers in the area. Manchin seems to be poised to profit off of coal even though climate proposals would end its use.
