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Hamilton to break ground on $500M plant

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By Dave Greber, Staff Writer 10:30 PM Monday, June 28, 2010

HAMILTON — Local and Commonwealth leaders are set to gather along the Ohio River Tuesday, June 29, to break ground on the next phase of the city’s ability to generate renewable energy.

A groundbreaking ceremony is set to take place at 10:30 a.m. in Bracken County, Ky. on the $500 million Meldahl hydroelectric plant.

It will be the beginning of an expected four-year project, that — once finished — will escalate Hamilton’s renewable electric generation past the 70 percent mark.

Plans for the plant — to be built at the Ohio River’s Meldahl Locks and Dam — have been in the works since mid-1990s, with final permitting process taking the better part of the past two years.

Hamilton will own 51.4 percent of the plant’s generation, with the remaining output to be shared among a conglomerate of Ohio and Kentucky entities represented by American Municipal Power.

In 2014 — should the Meldahl project be finished — AMP will assume the same ownership of the city’s Greenup Hydroelectric plant, located just east of Portsmouth.

Earlier this year, City Council named current City Manager Mark Brandenburger to oversee the project as leader the Department of Special Utility Projects. Brandenburger resigned as city manager in February but agreed to stay on in that capacity until a replacement is named.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2112 or dgreber@coxohio.com.

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