Updated at 3:59 p.m.
PROVIDENCE – The R.I. Superior Court on Tuesday denied Invenergy LLC’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Conservation Law Foundation and the Town of Burrillville to oppose the construction of Invenergy’s proposed 1,000-megawatt power plant.
“Plaintiffs have brought to this Court a question of statutory interpretation of substantial public interest that cries out for a declaratory judgment,” wrote Judge Michael Silverstein in his decision to deny Invenergy’s call for dismissal. “The substantial public interest raised by that issue compels this Court to overlook standing and determine the merits of Plaintiffs’ consolidated cases.”
In their suit, CLF and Burrillville challenged Chicago-based Invenergy’s legal rights to buy water from the Town of Johnston and the Providence Water Supply Board in order to power the plant, called the Clear River Energy Center, which was first proposed in 2015 and is currently awaiting approval from the R.I. Energy Facility Siting Board.
“When a fossil fuel company tries to take Providence’s water in order to power a plant we overwhelmingly oppose, we have a right to stand up and fight,” said Jerry Elmer, senior attorney for CLF, in a statement about Silverstein’s ruling. “Today, the courts affirmed that right. Rhode Island is poised to be a leader in clean, renewable energy, and we cannot turn back the clocks by doubling down on dirty fuels that are already on their way out.”
Invenergy’s plan to build a fossil-fuel plant in Burrillville has roused significant scrutiny and controversy from the public and opponents of gas companies. Elmer has argued that ISO New England’s rezoning of Rhode Island’s generator grid has resulted in excess capacity, and that Invenergy’s proposed plant is not needed.
Advocates of the Burrillville plant, however, argue that it would lower the cost of energy in Rhode Island. Earlier this month, a coalition of trade groups and unions formed Rhode Islanders for Affordable Energy, with members including The Energy Council of Rhode Island (TEC-RI), the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades.
“The Clear River Energy Center could save ratepayers millions of dollars,” said Doug Gablinske, executive director of TEC-RI, in an interview with Providence Business News. “If we don’t build this project, our costs will remain high and continue to go up and reliability could become a major issue, forcing brownouts.”
The R.I. Superior Court’s ruling, CLF and Burrillville’s lawsuit against Invenergy will go forward, with a briefing and hearing to be scheduled.
Kaylen Auer is a reporter for PBN.
