DKRW hoping financing finalized by year's end
By Sean Harkins Rawlins Times staff writer
According to a company official, the proposed coal-to-gas plant in Medicine Bow will be built. It's just a matter of when. Robert Kelly, executive chairman of DKRW Advanced Fuels LLC, said the company is hoping financing for the project will be in place by the year's end or early in 2011. "It's a very long process," Kelly said. "It takes a lot of time but we're hoping we're getting toward the goal line."
The project still needs to be approved by the U.S. Department of Energy to meet requirements in the National Environmental Act. A public hearing was held in December as part of the process for creating an Environmental Impact Statement for the plant. Kelly said
another meeting should be held mid-summer. If everything goes as planned, Kelly said construction would begin on the $2 billion facility as soon as financing is in place and would be operating in 2014.
Initially, the plant was projected to open in 2011, but having agreements and permits approved -- as well as securing financing during the recession -- has taken time. "This is not unlike any other major project," Kelly said, "You just don't do them overnight."
As DKRW works toward building the plant, Medicine Bow officials are preparing for a possible influx of people. The town's population, which is 274 according to the 2000 census, could grow exponentially during the plant's construction. DKRW officials estimated 2,000 or more workers will be needed to construct the facility. Once built,
(307)742-4100