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- DETAILS EMERGE
ABOUT NEW ENERGY PLANTS
Up to 600 megawatts of new electricity will be available to area
industries when two new power-generating plants are built and come
online in Butte over the next several years.
Continental Energy Services, Inc., a former subsidiary of the Montana
Power Company, is moving ahead with plans to build a new 500-megawatt
natural gas-fired power generating plant in the Silicon Mountain
Technology Park.
Construction is scheduled to begin by next spring for the new $300
million-dollar combined-cycle plant and, if all goes smoothly, the
new plant will be generating electricity by early 2004. Many construction
jobs will be created by the project and a permanent workforce of
25-30 good jobs will be needed to operate the plant.
According to Dan Rapkoch, spokesperson for Continental Energy Services,
the power generated at the plant will be sold primarily in Montana
to nearby businesses, businesses in Southwest Montana and then to
others throughout the state.
The plant will sit on about 20 acres east of the ASiMI plant at
Silver Bow. The gas-fired generating plant is expected to use about
4 million gallons of water a day from the Silver Lake system. The
plant is being designed to have a capacity to burn 85,000 million
cubic feet (mcf) of natural gas each day to produce a capacity of
500 megawatts of electricity.
A second, smaller natural gas-fired plant is under development by
Basin Creek Power, a subsidiary of MSE in Butte. The new plant will
be situated in the Industrial Park in South Butte. The present design
calls for a capacity to deliver 100 megawatts of power when completed.
"It's a natural gas-fired plant and we are evaluating a variety
of options as to how the plant is finally configured" said
Jim Williams, one of the project leaders. "The plant will take
less than 10 acres, probably closer to 4 or 5 acres when completed."
Williams explained that their top priority is to complete a permit
application and submit it to the Department of Environmental Quality
in the next couple of weeks. The construction schedule will depend
on the progress of the permitting process.
- DOING E-BUSINESS
FROM BUTTE'S CYBER VILLAGE
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- Document storage and retrieval
tasks can be much simpler now for businesses that rely on paper
files, thanks to E-docs.com, a high-tech company that offers document
imaging services from Butte's Cyber Village.
E-docs.com has maintained its headquarters in Uptown Butte since
1998, when they first got financial and other help from the BLDC
to set up their business.
That initial funding by the BLDC helped e-docs.com to travel and
make contacts that led to their initial success. Since then they
have purchased a building and located their business in Uptown Butte.
And they continue to grow.
According to Tressa Orizotti, Director of Marketing, "Last
year we booked one large hospital on the East Coast; this year we
have booked 100 hospitals nationwide."
E-docs.com now has business nationwide to develop and implement
electronic records and document management and workflow strategies
for state and local governments, health care providers and hospitals,
large corporations and non-profit organizations. A few of their
larger clients include Canon Business Solutions and IBM. You can
visit their website at http://www.recordsnet.com.
- BLDC'S EVAN BARRETT
NAMED MONTANA AMBASSADOR OF YEAR
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- Executive Director Evan Barrett
has been honored by the Montana Ambassadors as Ambassador of the
Year for 2001.
The Montana Ambassadors is a group of approximately 150 volunteer
business leaders from across the state, named by the Governor, who
work in coordination with the Governor and state agencies to accomplish
economic growth and job creation. The group has been in existence
since 1984.
Barrett was honored for his leadership efforts in coordinating a
number of statewide groups into an effective lobbying team that
helped pass the needed $20 million Jobs & Income economic development
legislation in the 1999 regular and 2000 special sessions of the
Legislature.
- MANY BUTTE "MOVERS
AND SHAKERS" HAVE BLDC TIES
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- In Business, is a new periodical published by the Montana
Standard that focuses on business in Southwest Montana.
In its second issue in August the glossy tabloid features 25 individuals
who have been deemed "movers and shakers" in the economy
of Southwest Montana. That process has shined a spotlight on the
impact of the BLDC's efforts to enhance the economic vitality of
the region.
Eight of the 25 people named have direct ties to the BLDC. Listed
as movers and shakers are Evan Barrett, BLDC Executive Director,
and current BLDC Board members Rick Griffith of the Bert Mooney
Airport, Dave Keck of ASiMI, Sandy Stash, ARCO/BP, and Brooks Hanna
of Brooks Hanna Ford.
Also named were Larry Walter of Wells Fargo Bank and Don Peoples
of MERDI/MSE, both former Board members and Presidents of the BLDC.
Bob and Pauline Poore were also named as "movers & shakers."
Bob served on the BLDC Board for six years.
- BLDC ELECTS NEW
BOARD
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- The Butte Local Development Corporation
recently elected new officers and board members. Re-elected for
two-year board terms were Rick Griffith of the Bert Mooney Airport,
Gary Rowe of MERDI, Bob Rodgers of St. James Healthcare, Joe Figuiera
of Montana Tech, and Laura Lee Dunlap, a local attorney.
Newly elected for his first two-year term on the board is Jim McGree
of McGree Trucking. Stepping down from the Board after a term of
service is Brian Legg of Brandon Legg Development.
New officers have been selected for the coming year. The following
is the current roster of the BLDC Board of Directors and Officers:
Executive Committee (also Directors)
Bob Rodgers, St. James Healthcare, President
Laura Lee Dunlap, Attorney, Vice President
Bill Fogarty, Port of Montana, Secretary.
Rick Griffith, Bert Mooney Airport,
Past President
Judy Jacobson, Chief Executive,
Butte-Silver Bow
Bill Kebe, Corette, Pohlman, and Kebe
Directors
Pam Butler, Wells Fargo Bank
Joe Figuiera, MT. Tech
Vice Chancellor for Research
Brooks Hanna, Brooks Hanna Ford
Dave Keck, ASiMI
Mike Kerns, Council of Commissioners
Jim McGree, McGree Trucking
Gary Rowe, MERDI
Sandy Stash, BP/ARCO
Mike Zimmerman, Touch America |
