Clean-burning coal technology to be used in proposed plants

Joint venture partners Great Northern Development, LP of Golden, Colo., and Kiewit Mining Group of Omaha, Neb., want to build coal-fired power plants in Belfield and South Heart, South Dakota, using clean-burning coal technology. Great Northern, which will operate the plants, says the company studied a similar coal-fired plant in Alaska. The two 250-megawatt plants in South Dakota are expected to cost $900 million each, generate enough power for about 500,000 homes, and employ up to 75 people with as many working in adjacent coal mines, Great Northern said. Excess power will be sold to other states. Clean-burning coal technology was used at the experimental Healy Clean Coal Project in Healy, Alaska. The plant was mothballed in 2000.