Illinois wins coal-energy project

Illinois won a prized national competition Tuesday for a cutting edge energy project that researchers hope will prove that abundant coal can be burned for power with virtually no pollution.

Mattoon in East Central Illinois was picked as the site for the $1.8 billion FutureGen plant by a consortium of coal companies, utilities and the Department of Energy, which will pay for the experiment.


Two sites in Texas and another in Illinois in nearby Tuscola were also in the running.

Mike Mudd, the alliance CEO, said Mattoon was picked because it offered sound geology, good water resources and was move-in ready for work crews without fear of legal battles over property rights.

FutureGen is one of the biggest research plums of the energy crisis. It is designed to marry a range of sophisticated technologies to demonstrate that coal, which fouls the air when burned by traditional methods, can be tapped as a clean fuel of the future.

Chicago Tribune