Bonds one step closer for natural gas facility at landfill
JOLIET – The Will County Board gave the go ahead to begin the process of issuing general obligation bonds for construction of a renewable natural gas production facility at the Prairie View Landfill. The action is a first step as Will County moves to harness millions of dollars of methane gas produced by the landfill and convert it into compressed natural gas that can be widely sold on the open market. It is estimated that when fully operational the facility will generate as much as $12 million per year for the Will County’s general fund.
“Today’s action is another step towards diversifying our revenue base in Will County which will help fund vital public programs by using our existing resources, in this case methane gas produced by the Prairie View Landfill,” said Mimi Cowan, Speaker of the Will County Board.
“Today’s action is another step towards diversifying our revenue base in Will County which will help fund vital public programs by using our existing resources, in this case methane gas produced by the Prairie View Landfill,” said Mimi Cowan, Speaker of the Will County Board.
The action specifically expresses the intent of the Will County Board to take first steps in the issuance of not more than $55 million in bonds to construct the renewable natural gas (RNG) facility.
“We are ready to move forward with securing the funding to build this revenue generator for our taxpayers,” said Mike Fricilone, Minority Leader. “We are making good on our pledge to turn trash into cash for our taxpayers.”
Thursday’s vote allows the county to move forward using hard data and cash projections that show options for payback of the bonds and the length of that payback. After these numbers are crunched, the Board’s finance committee will be presented options and the County Board will act to formally move forward with the sale of bonds.
A buyer of the natural gas has already been secured and it is estimated that the RNG plant will generate $12 million per year for the county once the bonds are paid off. Revenue from the sale of natural gas produced at the facility will pay the bond obligations and cover operational costs.
The County Board and County Executive are still working out the final details on the construction of the facility, but the intent of the Board is to ensure that construction of the facility includes minority and women owned businesses as part of the mix of workers on this important new project. This is consistent with the Board’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee plans to improve outreach efforts.
“We are ready to move forward with securing the funding to build this revenue generator for our taxpayers,” said Mike Fricilone, Minority Leader. “We are making good on our pledge to turn trash into cash for our taxpayers.”
Thursday’s vote allows the county to move forward using hard data and cash projections that show options for payback of the bonds and the length of that payback. After these numbers are crunched, the Board’s finance committee will be presented options and the County Board will act to formally move forward with the sale of bonds.
A buyer of the natural gas has already been secured and it is estimated that the RNG plant will generate $12 million per year for the county once the bonds are paid off. Revenue from the sale of natural gas produced at the facility will pay the bond obligations and cover operational costs.
The County Board and County Executive are still working out the final details on the construction of the facility, but the intent of the Board is to ensure that construction of the facility includes minority and women owned businesses as part of the mix of workers on this important new project. This is consistent with the Board’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee plans to improve outreach efforts.
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