Dynegy Supports Illinois Multi-Pollutant Standard Proposal to Lower Allowable Emissions
/Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) supports the Illinois Multi-Pollutant Standard (MPS) proposal that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has filed with the Illinois Pollution Control Board for its consideration and approval.
The rule change, which targets only the Company’s eight MPS-affected coal-fueled generating facilities in downstate Illinois, would replace two sets of annual emission rate limits with a single set of specific annual tonnage limits. The amount of annual emissions allowed would be lower than under the current rule, including a 20% reduction in sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions from the fleet. All other federal and state air quality regulations, including health-based standards, will remain unchanged and in place.
“Even though this proposal places new fixed limits on allowable emissions from our plants, we support it because it will provide regulatory clarity, consistency and create a single MPS operating group,” said Dean Ellis, Dynegy’s Executive Vice President of Regulatory Affairs. “This will help us in the future to better meet changing electricity demand and preserve jobs, while maintaining very low levels of emissions.
“These plants have already been retrofitted with approximately $2 billion in emission control technology that reduced sulfur dioxide emissions by 90% since 1998, with significant reductions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and other emissions as well,” Ellis added. “The MPS proposal will cap annual emissions at levels lower than envisioned by the original MPS rule.”
The MPS proposal provides additional environmental and compliance-related benefits, including:
- Allowing for the operation of the eight plants as a single MPS group with simplified annual compliance metrics that are consistent with existing federal programs;
- Imposing new requirements to ensure the continuous operation of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) control systems during the ozone season, and for SCR-controlled units to meet a seasonal limit of 0.10 pounds NOx per million British thermal units (mmBtu); and
- Setting an additional, site-specific annual SO2 limit for the Joppa Power Station.
Labor Support
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 51, (IBEW 51) also voiced its support of the proposed rule. “This new standard will help ensure that power generating facilities are available 24/7 to meet customer demand while providing additional environmental protections,” said John Johnson, IBEW 51 President. “These facilities provide good-paying union jobs for over 700 full-time employees, including 524 IBEW workers, and hundreds of part-time union and building trades jobs.”
About Dynegy
At Dynegy, we generate more than just power for our customers. We are committed to being a leader in the electricity sector. Throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Texas, Dynegy operates power generating facilities capable of producing 28,000 megawatts of electricity—or enough energy to power more than 22 million American homes. We’re proud of what we do, but it’s about much more than just output. We’re always striving to generate power safely and responsibly for our wholesale and retail electricity customers who depend on that energy to grow and thrive.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains statements reflecting assumptions, expectations, projections, intentions or beliefs about future events that are intended as “forward-looking statements,” particularly those statements concerning Dynegy’s expectations and beliefs regarding the Illinois MPS proposal; future electricity demand; job preservation and emissions levels. These statements are based on the current expectations of Dynegy’s management discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from current projections, forecasts, estimates and expectations of Dynegy is contained in Dynegy’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Specifically, Dynegy makes reference to, and incorporates herein by reference, the section entitled “Risk Factors” in its 2016 Form 10-K and subsequent Form 10-Qs. Any or all of Dynegy’s forward-looking statements may turn out to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions or by known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond Dynegy’s control.
