JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2014 The JEA Special Investigatory Committee appears poised to add yet another topic to the list of issues it\u2019s looking into: JEA\u2019s plans for a new combined cycle power plant.<\/p>\n
The committee is already investigating allegations of racism and toxic work culture at JEA and the utility\u2019s failure to charge as much as $100 million worth of additional capacity fees to large commercial customers.<\/p>\n
The interest in the power plant plans came up on Monday as committee members questioned JEA\u2019s immediate past Board Chair Joe DiSalvo.<\/p>\n
\u201cBasically, it\u2019s a significant capital project that\u2019ll reduce our carbon footprint by 40 percent. It burns cleaner natural gas, more efficient,\u201d said DiSalvo.<\/p>\n
READ: \u2018We\u2019ve got problems\u2019: New text messages reveal behind-the-scenes pressure over JEA lobbying contract<\/a><\/p>\n DiSalvo explained the utility has already spent between $350 to $500 million on the power plant, but JEA has not gotten official approval to build it from the state Public Service Commission.<\/p>\n JEA Special Investigatory Committee Chair Ron Salem (R-Group 2 At-Large) said he wants to make sure the plans aren\u2019t at risk of falling apart, with ratepayers left on the hook to pick up the tab for the hundreds of millions of dollars that have already been spent. <\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t want another Plant Vogtle where we\u2019ve got hundreds of millions of dollars of obligations for a long time,\u201d said Salem.<\/p>\n DiSalvo argued that if there was any risk, the PSC wouldn\u2019t approve the plans, the commission would have let JEA know.<\/p>\n But he said no red flags have been raised.<\/p>\n DiSalvo said he was confused by the line of questioning around the power plant, noting the plans have been in the works for years.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the first opposition besides the Sierra Club, you know, which you would expect sort of. First opposition or any inkling of why are we going this route,\u201d said DiSalvo. \u201dAgain, that came out of the blue to me.\u201d<\/p>\n Council President Kevin Carrico (R-District 4) indicated he would look at amending the Special Investigatory Committee\u2019s charge to include plans for the new power plant moving forward.<\/p>\n >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<<\/a><\/p>\n [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks<\/a>]<\/p>\n