The Times-Courier said the EIS documents, arriving as an 1800-page volume, will be reviewed by US Congress members first and then delivered to local leaders for the four site choice communities: Mattoon and Tuscola in Illinois, and Odessa and Jewett, Texas.

Hearings with the US Department of Energy and officials from the FutureGen Alliance will then be held, Coles Together president Angela Griffin told the paper. Meanwhile, the environmental impact reviews in the two Illinois towns are anticipated to be held during the final week of June and will be publicly announced when confirmed.

The gatherings, Griffin added, will provide opportunity for public input and inquiries regarding FutureGen before a final decision is made on the project later this year. An announcement of the winner is expected in September.

The winning site location’s economy will definitely benefit, as an estimated 1300 construction jobs and 150 permanent jobs will be created in the state as a result. The $US1 billion project, tagged the first zero-emissions coal-fuelled power plant, is expected to break ground in 2009.

Members of the FutureGen Alliance include American Electric Power, Anglo American, BHP Billiton, the China Huaneng Group, Consol Energy, E.ON US, Foundation Coal, Rio Tinto Energy America, Peabody Energy, PPL Corporation, and Southern Company.