William Charles Energy, LLC and Rochelle Municipal Utilities Jointly Announce the commissioning of a New Landill-Gas-To-Energy Facility in Rochelle, IL.
In cooperation with RMU and Rochelle Waste Disposal, William Charles Energy, LLC developed and constructed the Rochelle Energy Center, a state-of-the-art 4.8 megawatt renewable energy facility located at Rochelle Municipal Landfill #2 in Rochelle, IL. RMU will purchase the power produced at the energy center and will retain all of the renewable energy credits associated with the electricity production. The plant achieved commercial operation in December 2011. A ribbon cutting event was held at 10:00 a.m. on January 12th, 2012.
The Rochelle Energy Center has three Caterpillar G3520 reciprocating engine generator sets, each rated at 1.6 megawatts. The project includes a biological treatment system to clean the landfill gas and produce a beneficial usable byproduct. The byproduct is elemental sulfur which can be used locally as a component of high grade fertilizer. The gas clean-up process lowers emissions and improves the performance of the facility.
The Rochelle Energy Center will meet the total electrical energy needs of approximately 4,000 homes. The power is produced and consumed locally. The facility will have two new full and one part time job, and provided as many as 25 jobs throughout the design and construction of the project.
“The completion of the Rochelle Energy Center demonstrated how a strong public/private partnership enable the project to be completed on-time and within budget. William Charles Energy, RMU and Rochelle Waste Disposal have worked very well together throughout the project. Each group worked tirelessly to ensure that the project would be a success,” said Jeff Gregory, president of William Charles Energy. “We are very excited because this state-of-the-art plant represents the current best available technology for emissions controls and gas cleaning. This is an extremely clean energy source and will help RMU increase its renewable energy portfolio.”
Dave Plyman, City Manager of Rochelle said “In our attempt to become more environmentally involved this is a great opportunity for Rochelle. Some of the advantages of the Landfill Gas to Energy Center include; utilization of local landfill gas and requires no RMU capital for the project. We are excited to enter into this joint venture with William Charles Energy, an innovative and dynamic company focusing on renewable and alternative energy projects.”
For more information, contact Jeffrey Gregory, William Charles Energy, LLC, 815-963-7557 or Joe Orlikowski, RMU Electric Operations, 815-562-4155.