Plug Power secures funding for Graham plant, five others

Plug Power told Young County officials that it has closed on a federal loan needed to complete construction of a hydrogen plant near Graham, and will make its promised January tax payment, County Judge Win Graham said.

Revenue from the plant, which sits in the taxing district for the Olney Hamilton Hospital and Newcastle ISD would boost the economic fortunes of both entities.

Last year, Olney voters approved the sale of $33 million in general obligation bonds to fund construction of a new hospital on the understanding that the bonds would be repaid with tax revenue from the Plug Power plant and two wind farms in the hospital’s taxing district.

The hospital sold $27 million in bonds - reserving the final $6 million until interest rates were more favorable, OHH board chairman Dale Lovett said. The Newcastle Independent School District was counting on the hydrogen plant tax revenue to expand its stadium, track and campus.

Mr. Lovett and OHHboard member Lyndsey Miller said they were taking a wait-and-see approach on the company’s announcement.

The company told Commissioners last summer that it was pushing to complete the plant on FM 209 by late 2025 to meet rising demand for hydrogen fuel.

The company did about $13 million worth of work on the Project Limestone plant - building a water line and pump station from the City of Graham’s wastewater treatment plant and pilings for electric lines to run from the Young Wind farm – before halting work altogether.

Plug announced on Jan. 16 that it had closed a $1.66 billion loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO).

The loan guarantee will help finance the construction of up to six projects to produce and liquify zero- or low-carbon hydrogen at scale throughout the United States, the company said in a statement.

The Graham facility will be the first to benefit from the financing and will create “hundreds of high-quality jobs,” the statement said.

Plug representative Andrew Temple contacted Judge Graham shortly after the announcement to say that the company will make its $300,000 tax abatement payments this month and would be “mobilizing” at the Graham site within the next two months, Judge Graham said.

“He said in the next couple of months he will be coming to commissioners court to update them on their plans for the Young County plant once they get through what they called their remobilization meetings,” Judge Graham said.

Mr. Temple also said the company has completed environmental studies and “can start moving once they come up with a plan,” he said.

The company has not revealed when the plant would be operational, he said.

”I’m excited that Plug Power has gotten their finances in order so that they can move forward,” he said. “Obviously that facility will be a huge economic boon to the county both in tax revenues generated and jobs created.”