A pollution-spewing power plant in western Indiana that was set to close this year is getting a reprieve after being purchased by a coal company and landing a new energy-guzzling neighbor hoping to cash in on the international cryptocurrency boom.
The idea of using a fuel source that is millions of years old to power the futuristic technology is not only ironic, it’s troubling to environmental and consumer advocates. They worry the two facilities, and the dirty power behind them, will leave Hoosiers at risk of continued pollution — and potentially higher electricity bills.
The exact nature of the relationship between the Meron Generating Station’s new owner and AboutBit, the private company planning an adjacent crypto “mining” facility, is unclear. And officials aren’t talking.
While the questions in Indiana now are focused on the coal-fired powerplant near Merom, a town of about 200 residents located 30 miles south of Terre Haute, it’s part of a larger national debate about coal, aging power plants and crypto mining.
Cryptomining is booming across the U.S., spurred in part by a 2021 decision in China to ban the practice. Looking for a soft place to land, with little regulatory oversight and cheap electricity to power massive computer centers turned to the U.S. Some are locating near coal and natural gas plants that were to be retired soon, while others are setting up business directly on the grounds of power plants.
Indiana’s Merom Generating Station, along the state’s western border, is a 40-year-old coal-fired plant. Its retirement was announced in 2020, with the plant slated to go offline in 2023. Then in 2022, that course was reversed. The utility that owned Merom sold the plant to a coal company to continue operating. In the meantime, a cryptomining company announced it was coming to town and would need a lot of power.
AboutBit, a Kentucky-based cryptocurrency start-up, said it would develop a state-of-the-art mining facility in Indiana that would be one of the largest in the nation. And it’s being built on the same property as the Merom coal plant.
Despite the location, AboutBit told IndyStar the crypto facility has nothing to do with the coal plant staying open. That and other contradictory statements from the crypto company have only created more confusion and suspicion.
Amidst the uncertainty, advocates say they have serious concerns. The plant is currently under construction but its opening date is “to be determined.”
“I would be extremely skeptical of their claims unless and until they can provide you with documentation backing them up,” said Ben Inskeep, program director of Citizens Action Coalition, a consumer advocacy group. “Their refusal to do so and their complete lack of transparency is a big red flag. It raises more questions than answers. What are they hiding?”
Hoosier Energy, a rural electric cooperative utility serving Hoosiers, announced in 2020 that it was going to retire the Merom Generating Station — one of 14 coal plants still operating in Indiana. At that time the utility said shutting down the decades-old coal plant “provides a substantial savings” versus keeping it open.
But in 2022, the utility announced it would sell the Merom coal plant to Hallador Power Company, a subsidiary of coal-mining company Hallador Energy. Hallador operates coal mines in Indiana and last year reopened two mines in concert with acquiring the coal plant.
As part of the announcement, Hoosier Energy also announced it would buy power produced at Merom from Hallador.
“It feels very odd that they would find it’s no longer wise to operate and said they need to retire it and get more economical power,” Inskeep said, “and then they turn around and sell it and buy the power from it.”
In a statement to IndyStar, Hoosier Energy said it and its member cooperatives “benefit significantly” from the transfer of Merom to Hallador and the current power purchase agreement. Hallador did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
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What Inskeep said he finds even more odd, however, is a new customer in the Hoosier Energy service territory.
Just months after the coal plant’s retirement was reversed, AboutBit announced it would open a large cryptomining facility on the same site as the Merom power plant. The crypto facility will use thousands of computers to verify and track crypto currency transactions. The facility also will have an intensive cooling system to keep the computers from overheating.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, this facility has serious power needs. Previous statements issued about the project have mentioned 115 megawatts of power. If the facility were to operate 24/7, which…
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