OHIO VALLEY ELECTRIC CORPORATION _____________________________________________ 

 P. O. BOX 16631 

 COLUMBUS, OH 43216 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

OVEC TO INVEST $360 MILLION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL 

CONTROLS AT KYGER CREEK POWER PLANT 

GALLIPOLIS, OH, May 11, 2006 – The Ohio Valley Electric Corp. (OVEC) announced 

today preliminary plans for investing an estimated $360-million to install additional 

environmental controls at its Kyger Creek power plant in Cheshire, Ohio. 

OVEC plans to install flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems at the facility. The 

Kyger Creek plant has a generating capacity of 1,085 megawatts (MW). FGD systems, 

commonly called "scrubbers," reduce sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by as much as 98 

percent. The Kyger Creek plant has five separate 217-MW generating units. Two 

absorber modules will be built to treat the boiler exhaust. Three units will be connected 

to one module and two units to the second module. 

"The addition of the FGD systems represents a major commitment to 

environmental quality in southeastern Ohio,” said Ralph Amburgey, Kyger Creek plant 

manager. “The project will also produce an economic boost to the region.” 

Engineering and permitting activities are currently under way and construction on 

the Kyger Creek FGD system is scheduled to begin in 2007. The Kyger Creek system is 

scheduled to begin operation in 2009. 

OVEC has engaged American Electric Power Service Corporation to serve as 

the project manager for the construction project. AEP will provide professional services 

in licensing, engineering, design, procurement and construction management for the 

project. 

“The project will produce some changes in the appearance of the plant’s stack 

exhaust,” Amburgey explained. “We want to assure our neighbors that the changes 

actually represent an improvement in air quality for the region.” 
Because scrubbers increase the amount of water vapor emitted through the 

stack, the plume will be more visible. “The new plume will essentially be water vapor,” 

said Amburgey. “It will be the most obvious sign that the plants’ emissions are cleaner 

than they were before.” A new stack will be built for the plant as part of the overall FGD 

project. 

An FGD system uses both chemical and mechanical processes to remove and 

capture SO2 from a combustion boiler’s flue gas. The SO2 in the flue gas interacts and is 

absorbed into a finely ground limestone slurry. Once dissolved, the SO2 reacts with the 

calcium in the limestone to form a solid compound. A mechanical process removes the 

water from this slurry, and the resultant FGD material, gypsum, is suitable for disposal in 

an appropriate landfill. It is also suitable for conversion to usable building materials. 

The construction project will create the need for temporary labor. Temporary 

positions will be filled through contractors selected to install the equipment. Workers 

from all 14 building trades will be supplied through local and regional union halls. 

Construction employment is expected to peak at 400 workers. Roughly 20 additional 

full-time staff will be required at the plant once the scrubbers are completed and in 

operation. 

“The addition of FGD equipment will enable the facility to continue to comply with 

regional and national air quality standards in the most cost-effective manner,” Amburgey 

explained. As part of OVEC’s environmental improvement efforts, selective catalytic 

reduction systems were added to all units in 2002 to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides 

(NOx.) The NOx reduction systems began operation in 2003. 

Kyger Creek’s first unit began generation electricity in 1955. 

OVEC was organized in October 1952 by 15 sponsoring utilities. Parent companies of the sponsoring 

utilities are Allegheny Energy, Inc. (NYSE: AYE), American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), Buckeye Power, 

Inc., Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK), DPL, Inc. (NYSE: DPL), E.ON AG, FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) 

and Vectren Corp. (NYSE: VVC).