Kentucky Power doesn’t have capacity for customers and $250 million cryptomining facility
By Ryan Van Velzer,
15 hours ago
‘The utility will not have enough power for both residential customers and a proposed cryptomining facility beginning in 2026 Kentucky Power Vice President Brian West told regulators at a hearing on Thursday.’
“Currently that is what [our plan] says, we are working on our plan as we speak,” West replied to Kentucky Public Service Commission Chairman Kent Chandler.
Chinese-owned Ebon International proposed the $250 million computing complex on 55 acres leased from Kentucky Power at the Big Sandy Generating Station, according to PSC testimony . The specific terms of the discounts the crypto company would receive are confidential, but several groups, including the Attorney General’s office, say customers could end up paying higher bills as a result.
In late June, the Public Service Commission alleged Kentucky Power had violated state law for failing to provide adequate service following a shortfall during a winter storm last December . As a result, Kentucky Power had to purchase wholesale electricity from independent grid operator PJM at a cost of around $3,500 per megawatt hour, compared to a regular wholesale price of around $35 per megawatt hour, according to the Kentucky Lantern .
That shortfall serves as a worst-case scenario of what can happen when a power company doesn’t have the adequate power supply to cover its service area.
In a separate case, Kentucky Power is proposing an 18% rate increase on residential customers, resulting in them paying about $35 more per month. Kentucky Power says the proposed rates are a reflection of the challenges facing the utility, which include natural disasters and population loss.
In Thursday’s testimony, West said the proposed contract with Ebon would bring $96 million in economic development to Lawrence County in its first year in operation and as much as $27 million each year afterward. He also said it would bring around 100 jobs that pay as much as $76,000 annually.
However, Attorney Michael Kurtz, who represents Kentucky Industrial Utility Customers, said the vast majority of the jobs would pay $18 or less.
“These are still significant jobs for this location,” West said in response.
Kentucky’s seen a wave of interest from crypto companies as the result of tax incentives passed by the Legislature. House Bill 230 , which became law in 2021, provides sales and use tax exemptions on electricity and on the tangible personal property directly used in commercial mining of cryptocurrencies.
Crypto markets have been volatile over the last few years with Bitcoin shedding most of its value, and the cryptocurrency exchange FTX under investigation for defrauding investors.
In testimony, Kurtz questioned whether Kentucky Power could even sue the parent company, Ebang International Holdings, in the case of a dispute.
“Well, you understand if there’s a dispute, a lawsuit between Kentucky Power and the LLC, you’re limited to the LLC, you can’t go after the parent company. Do you understand that?” Kurtz said.
West said Kentucky Power’s contract has significant protections for the utility and its ratepayers.
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Lawrence Co. Judge/Executive Phil Carter, who proposed the facility for the local spot near the smoke stacks of the Ky. Power facility on U.S. 23, has not made a statement on the bitcoin company’s effect on local citizens’ safety vs. jobs.
Carter, a Ky. Power retiree, has been mum on the facility since he proposed it several months ago. Statewide news organizations are beginning to ask questions but no answers from the local courthouse –yet.
There is no such thing as commercial mining of cryptocurrencies. Crypto is a phantasy and fraud, as it possesses no intrinsic value. One cannot mine what doesn’t exist. This so-called currency has only the value of the real currency people invest in it, as is the case with all Ponzi schemes. The people who got in then out at the right time made a fortune. that time is long past. “Bully” is leading the simple minded on a path to destruction. I can ‘t believe people fall for this, or that a man elected to lead the county would do this to the people he claims to serve?
Another Braidy, thats all this is! Fake company, fake numbers. Crypto mines don’t need employees only a couple for maintenance. This company has been pushing this all over the state, they just found someone dumb enough to believe. Carter continues to run this county into the ground. It will probably turn into another lawsuit against the county. Get him out.
Amen!
How about AEP granting the said area back to the people of our area and start conversation about a large, modern sewage treatment facility with filter press plant “ to process sewer treatment solids, for onsite incineration”. Build it large enough to service the surrounding counties as well. If you want good jobs to come, these things need to be in place. Selling out to the Chinese, if that is who it is, or anyone that doesn’t have growing our local economy on the top of their list, should be immediately disqualified.
Well said
If this scheme/scam of a deal is approved in Lawrence County and must be payed for,then make the Kentucky Power ratepayers in that county cover the costs,as they will benefit most,rather than making ALL ratepayers in Kentucky Power’s 20 service counties have to suffer for this tremendous expenditure/venture.
The issue here: the Lawrence County Kentucky Power ratepayers do NOT want that new “business “. We were not informed of all these issues and we certainly cannot afford them.
Oh I see the article has been word switched to the degree that Phil had a name change? Wow small town politics at it’s finest.
Really? I can. He’s a Chinese supporter that hates America from what I read. I hope KY has enough sense to stop this from becoming a reality.
This will never employ more than a handful of maintenance workers. AI doesn’t need humans . This equipment produces a ton of heat and must have redundant air conditioning. It will suck more energy than every household added together in the county. And then, bust and the building will set empty but your electric rates will never go back down.
Ky power needs to lose its license to operate for selling out to China all they are doing is getting control of our power grids people need to call govnor office and complain and the rate hikes are a joke the jumped my bill over 100.00 dollars from same time last year and our power usage hasn’t changed
From month to month it’s the same
Anyone remember when KY had the lowest utility rates in the nation? That was just before Obama, we burned our nice clean coal. Then the liberals polluted our minds with nonsense like climate change and crypto mining. Now we have a disaster running the country and lunatics running LC, I’ll just be damned!
DA we still get the overwhelming majority of our electric from coal
Unsure if satire or stupid. Clean and coal don’t go together. And climate change isn’t real? You can take these temperature spikes and go live on an island and keep them all to yourself. Record highs and lows every year. Progressively worse climate, is, in fact, climate change. Also, liberals don’t want cryptomining crap either. Stop making false narratives.
Climate change isn’t based off of fossil fuel usage! It’s a so called “false narrative” rich people used to get even more rich! The world is going to end and burn up eventually. No matter what political campaign one could come up with will not change the ending. And one could assume these temperature spikes could possibly be due to not really having much of a winter. If you’ve been around any length of time on this earth and have some grasp of what goes on typically that’s what happens when you have a mild winter. It’s how they make there assumptions in the almanac as well off of a broad calculation of previous years. Anyways keep on being liberal if you in fact are!
Big Sandy Power Plant
23000 U.S. Highway 23,
Louisa, K Y 41230, Lawrence County
Generation Capacity: 295 Megawatts
# of Employees: 24
Natural Gas Use: 2.3 Million Cubic Feet per Hour
Mitchell Power Plant*
8999 Energy Road,
Moundsville, W V 26041, Marshall County
Generation Capacity: 1,560 Megawatts
# of Employees: 196
Annual Coal Use: 1.3 Million Tons
*Kentucky Power owns a 50 percent
interest in this plant and its generation
First thing you should know Ky Power is a business period.
This is a bad idea. China is trying to successfully buying farmland in some regions of the country. The areas with smart local people stopped it. Are we among the smart people?
Not if you count KAG.