PEABODY — Pressure is mounting on the city and the Peabody Municipal Light Plant (PMLP) to come clean about a proposal by the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company that aims to build a peaking plant in Peabody.
A peaking plant is a type of power plant that generally runs only in cases of high demand.
“There seems to be an abundance of confusion and a lack of transparency regarding the proposed gas/oil peaking plant in Peabody,” said Ward 5 Councilor Joel Saslaw. “I do not wish to cast blame, but I do ask that the parties who know the facts and any agreements that have been agreed to, come forth and share with the citizens of Peabody and other surrounding communities this important information.”
“This whole thing has been held close to the vest and there has been no transparency, which is shameful,” added Councilor-at-Large Jon Turco. “It was sprung on us at the last minute and that is shameful. The truth is I, and the entire City Council — we have all been left in the dark on this and that’s not right.”
The Massachusetts Department of Utilities (DPU) has received at least three letters from state legislators demanding that accurate information about the project be shared with the public, and for assurances that the project complies with new laws and limits on carbon emissions and renewable energy.
“It is critical that accurate information and adequate public education be provided to ratepayers and residents before any final determination is made on the financing of the project,” state Rep. Thomas Walsh (D-Peabody) wrote in a letter Monday to DPU Chair Matthew H. Nelson.
“It is imperative that the peaking plant coincides with the Commonwealth’s most recent goals.”
State Rep. Sally Kerans (D-Danvers) said she has deep reservations about the project, which she says is in direct conflict to the new Next Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate Change Policy law with regard to attaining net zero emissions by 2050.
Kerans said in a letter to the DPU Monday that one of the provisions of the law requires municipal light plants to increase investments in renewables. “This proposed Peabody plant has no discernable renewable component.”
Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC) spokeswoman Kate Roy said the plant is being built to satisfy PMLP’s capacity requirements under new rules, and will result in reduced emissions. She said the cost of the project is $85 million.
Roy said residents can learn more about the proposed peaking plant in Peabody, Project 2015A, by visiting MMWEC’s website at www.project2015A.org.
She said MEPA, air, and acid rain permits have been secured. The determination of local permits is pending and expected to be completed in the second and third quarters of 2021.
“The plant is being built for the light departments’ capacity requirements under ISO New England rules,” Roy said. “It is expected to run fewer than 240 hours per year, typically in times of system stress.
“As a new, efficient resource, the capacity resource would produce fewer emissions than 94 percent of similar resources currently in New England. When it does run, it is expected to result in a net benefit/reduction in emissions of approximately 4500 tons of carbon emissions.”
“When it became apparent at Monday’s meeting that the public was still in the dark, why did it take almost a week to get that information (from Roy) to be uncovered,” Saslaw said. “Someone should have published and furnished that website immediately. Also, who is known about any agreements of payment in lieu of taxes with the city or PMLP?”
State Sen. Joan B. Lovely (D-Salem) said she is dismayed that “this project has come into being without a public process.
“It is imperative that the entire process be open to public input and that these concerns, among others, be addressed before final approval,” she said.
Turco agreed, saying that he was upset that the process has been “secretive.”
“I have asked repeatedly about the project and have been offered very little information,” he said. “People should be angry. I’m angry. I want to know why this has been kept secret. It should have been discussed with the city’s elected officials and residents should not have to search for information about a project this size. There should have been open discussion with residents for the last four years since it was voted on.”
Turco said he will bring the matter to the May 13 City Council meeting.
“I want our mayor, our city solicitor (Don Conn), and PMLP manager (Charles Orphanos) to tell us what our rights are regarding the land and to determine its use,” he said. “I was not privy to any of this conversation, which as an elected official in this city, I find to be appalling.”
Mayor Ted Bettencourt did not respond to a request for comment.
