Natural gas-fired generation facility
The Ute Indian tribe says it plans to build a 1,000MW natural gas-fired generation facility on the Uintah and Ouray Reservation in northeast Utah.
The project is in development stages, but tribal leaders say its land and energy resources contain “enormous potential for electricity, transmission, renewables, and natural gas related projects.”
The tribe is currently examining its energy infrastructure on the reservation to develop a comprehensive plan of action. It says the generation facility would use the tribe’s large reserves of natural gas and create opportunities to introduce more sources of clean energy into the grid.
According to Southern California Telephone and Energy (SCT&E), a development firm hired by the tribe to assist with planning, the plant is expected to generate up to 1,000MW and provide power for approximately 850,000 homes annually.
“The business committee encourages and supports the development of the tribe’s resources in a manner that will provide long-term and sustained benefits to the tribe so that our members can look forward to a clean energy future,” explains Ronald Wopstock, vice-chairman of the Ute Tribal Business Committee and member of the steering committee overseeing the project.
“Not only will this project advance energy independence for the tribe and the United States as a whole, it will also utilize the most advanced emission controls available, making it one of the cleanest natural gas-fired power plants in the United States,” Wopstock continues. “As a result, the project will serve as a source of clean energy to replace outdated coal-fired power plants – such as the Bonanza Plant in the Uintah Basin – which have caused significant damage to the local environment.”