September 19th, 2022 by WCBC Radio

A Maryland company announced Friday it will build a natural gas power plant designed to capture climate-changing carbon in northern West Virginia. Officials said it was made possible by a recently signed law embraced by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin that gives tax breaks for alternative energy projects.

Competitive Power Ventures of Silver Spring, Maryland, will construct the 1,800-megawatt plant in Doddridge County, a top producer of natural gas in the state. More than 1,000 union jobs will be used in the construction of the combined-cycle plant, and the natural gas used by the facility will support hundreds of additional jobs, the company said.

“CPV is pleased to work closely with West Virginia to bring this project to fruition in the coming years,” company CEO Gary Lambert said in a statement.

The company said the extensive regulatory approval process has already started for the $3 billion project and officials expect it to go into operation later this decade.