PEABODY — The Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC) has temporarily pulled the plug on its Project 2015A plans to build a peaking plant in Peabody.
MMWEC’s Board of Directors authorized a 30-day minimum pause in a vote on Monday.
“It’s not any one group in particular, but certainly the noise the opposition has created has reached all levels of government,” said Peabody Municipal Light Plant (PMLP) Manager Charles Orphanos. “The opposition did a good job getting their message out, which is basically false claims of lack of transparency. We did not get the facts out there, which are that, at the time the project was voted (on) in January 2017, we held multiple public hearings to explain why this project is necessary.
“It’s a shame that these groups that have no connection to Peabody are spreading misinformation.”
MMWEC CEO Ron DeCurzio noted that much has changed in technology since the project was first proposed more than five years ago, making the need for reassessment even more necessary.
“We are thankful for the significant input we have received from interested stakeholders, including the elected and appointed leaders of the Commonwealth and from municipal officials,” DeCurzio continued. “We share the zeal expressed by many members of the public for embracing new technologies.”
The project has been under development and public review for more than three years and has secured state permits. Its proposed location is on the site of PMLP’s Waters River Station on Pulaski Street.
Peaking power plants are power plants that generally run only during periods of high demand.
As proposed, Project 2015A consists of a 55-megawatt capacity plant servicing 14 nearby cities and towns — including Peabody and parts of Lynnfield and Marblehead — during periods of peak electricity demand. Because it will be among the newest and most efficient resources, it will produce fewer emissions than 94 percent of the fossil fuel plants in New England. It will displace carbon that would otherwise be produced by higher-polluting plants, resulting in a net reduction in carbon emissions.
“MMWEC is a proven leader in carbon-free technology, and we are proud that our members’ power portfolios have some of the highest percentages of renewable energy and the lowest carbon emissions in the Commonwealth,” said DeCurzio, “In fact, most of the Project 2015A participating municipal light plants have already exceeded the Baker administration’s 2030 carbon reduction targets.“
Orphanos said PMLP has already exceeded the state’s 2030 Roadmap goals and is currently working on meeting 2040 goals. Since 2008, PMLP has added only carbon-free resources to its energy portfolio. Within the last eight months alone, PMLP, through MMWEC, joined Hydro Québec, a large public utility which uses hydropower. PMLP is also one of six municipal light plants (MLPs) to participate in Project 2020, a seven-megawatt solar photovoltaic project to be built on the MMWEC campus in Ludlow.
“We are continuing to build our energy portfolio to meet state goals and are constantly looking for projects with zero net emissions,” Orphanos said.
Over the course of the next 30 days, MMWEC will meet with and seek input from stakeholders, including regulators, other Commonwealth officials, the participating communities and the larger community to consider alternatives and assess their feasibility. The board will regroup to discuss findings at the end of the review period.
DeCurzio said that that while MMWEC has fulfilled all the required public notices and applications for the project and followed the same procedure it did for advancing other developments, the board determined it would be prudent to evaluate all of the concerns recently expressed about the project.
“Driving toward the best carbon-free technology, while making sure it meets reliability and affordability standards for our communities — that is in our DNA,” he said.
Orphanos said the temporary halt will allow PMLP and the other communities committed to Project 2015A to create opportunities to educate the public about the project and dismiss mistruths that are being spread by opponents.
“The opponents’ voice needs to be truthful, so now it’s our turn to set the facts and the record straight so the public knows this project is necessary,” Orphanos said. “We have always been above board and will continue to be.”
Information about Project 2015A can be found at www.project2015A.org.
