Negotiations continue to sell the former Gibbons Creek power plant in Grimes County.
The coal fired facility, which opened in 1983, was closed in 2018 by the Texas Municipal Power Agency. TMPA is composed of the cities of Bryan, Denton, Garland, and Greenville.
As TMPA continues negotiations, opponents to reopening the coal-fired plant have participated in two public meetings held during a five day period.
During the June 8 BTU (Bryan Texas Utilities) board meeting and the June 4 TMPA board meeting, opponents raised concerns about emissions from burning coal.
BTU general manager Gary Miller, who participated in both meetings, says they will do what is best for their customer base and their ratepayers. That includes taking into account any environmental and health impacts of their service area.
Miller says BTU and its customers would benefit from ending all financial responsibility for the Gibbons Creek property, adding “That is the one and only reason that we are continuing to pursue the potential sale.”
The BTU board received 14 e-mails at this week’s meeting opposing any sale due to emissions from burning coal.
Five of the e-mails called for turning the more than 16,000 acre property that includes a lake into recreational and/or educational space and/or turning it into a solar farm or some other production of green energy.
Miller also says if Gibbons Creek is sold and reopened, BTU will not be purchasing power from the new owner.
Click below for comments from Gary Miller, visiting with WTAW’s Bill Oliver.