Presque Isle Power Plant begins shutdown process

MARQUETTE — WE Energies are beginning the process of shutting down the Presque Isle Power Plant.

The WE Energy Group says the Presque Isle Power Plant has been on track to be shut down for sometime in April or May, but no exact date has yet been determined.

Two natural gas-fueled generating stations will replace the coal-fueled power plant. Construction activities are essentially complete at both stations and are now being tested. At the end of 2018, WE Energies had 93 employees at the Presque Isle Power Plant.

Now the company says human resources and benefits representatives are working closely with these employees to help prepare them for the future when the plant is retired.

Even though the city is concerned with the loss of jobs they are also concerned with the loss of tax revenue.

“The city has been concerned mostly the loss of tax revenue,” explained Marquette City Manager, Mike Angeli. “Associated with the closing of the plant of course we are concerned of the loss of jobs. Although the tax revenue is direct affect to our budget.”

The city of Marquette and the WE Energies is still in communications about what the property will be utilized for after the decommissioning of the plant.
The city is hoping in the near future to have the situation completely resolved.

“Well of course we don’t want another building to just be falling apart and be unused and unoccupied,” added Angeli. “We also don’t want this to be a sore sight to the public and especially along the shore line due to where it located. So certainly we are hoping within a year or two to have it all fully resolved.”

Stay with ABC 10 as the story develops.