Riverview Energy loses permit for coal-to-diesel plant
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A long-planned coal-to-diesel facility in Spencer County has hit a major roadblock. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management informed Delaware-based Riverview Energy this week that its permit to construct the $2 billion facility in the town of Dale has expired.
The project was first announced in 2018, and Riverview first received the permit from IDEM in June 2019. The company was granted an extension of the permit, which set a deadline to begin construction by June 2022.
IDEM said staff from its Office of Air Quality visited the site on June 10, 2022 and found that some prep work had been done at the site, including the pouring of a concrete foundation, erection of a barrier fence around the site and the grading of an access road.
However, since that time, no additional construction-related activities have commenced, which was confirmed by Riverview. The company also stated that it had not entered into any binding contracts related to the project, according to IDEM.
“Based on this evaluation, IDEM has determined that the approval to construct this project has expired…and the permit is no longer valid,” the agency said in its letter.
Riverview Energy did not respond to a request for comment from Inside INdiana Business by deadline Friday.
The town of Dale is located about 130 miles southwest of Indianapolis and about 50 miles northeast of Evansville.
The company previously said the facility would be the first in the nation to take non-combusted carbon feedstock mixed with hydrogen to create ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel. The facility was expected to produce 4.8 million barrels of fuel, as well as 2.5 million barrels of naptha when fully operational. The project was also expected to create more than 2,000 jobs in the region.
The project was the subject of several legal complaints by Southwestern Indiana Citizens for Quality of Life Inc. (SWICQL) and Valley Watch Inc., particularly around the issuance and extension of the permit.
SWICQL President Mary Hess called the ruling by IDEM a victory for area residents.
“We have spent countless hours fighting for this outcome for a half a decade,” Hess said in a news release. “Riverview planned to use our community as the guinea pigs for its toxic refinery, and with IDEM’s decision to revoke the permit, we look forward to economic development that is safe and clean for all the communities nearby.”
IDEM did note that Riverview would have 18 days from the issuance of the letter, dated Aug. 1, to challenge the ruling. The company would also be able to reapply for a new permit.