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COLORADO ;~- <br />~ PRESS ^ ~ <br />Clipping Service <br />1336 Glenarm Place <br />Denver CO 80204 <br />rsnais~~ Si~z <br />III IIIIIIIIIIIIIIII <br />999 <br />NaTec's Annual Payroll Estimated at $1.3 Million <br />~#lahso~ite Co~lpany Outliaes <br />NaTec's senior vice president Tom <br />1\ Stevenson has good reason to be <br />excited. So do Rio Blanco County <br />`,officials. <br />Cover the next 10 months, NaTec <br />t' ~ plans to start developing a $20 <br />`~ million nahcolite project on Piceance <br />~~' Creek which all told, will create <br />`I-~ almost 35 new jobs with an annual <br />payroll of around 51.3 million. <br />"It's a unique project in that it's <br />the first major move into mining <br />outside of coal ~n quite some time," <br />Stevenson to 1 the Rio Blanco <br />County Comrrdssioners who were <br />appraised first hand of the com- <br />pany's plans at Monday's meeting. <br />On the drawing boards for aknost <br />20 years now, using nahcolite to <br />commercially hblp solve the sulphur <br />emission problems of coal fired <br />generators appears to almost be a <br />reality. <br />"If things gs ee planned, we plan <br />to start construction during the <br />second quarter of this year and Aavp <br />it completed by the end of Decembef <br />so that we can start production by <br />the fast of 1991," said Stevenson. A <br />peak workforce construction of 60 <br />employees, primarily of electricians <br />and pipefitters, would be needed for <br />this phase of the project which is <br />estimated to pump around 51.7 <br />million in salaries into the area's <br />econotgy. Stevenson said most of <br />l;(wse workers would be hired locafiy. <br />Abet the five-month pilot phase of <br />tlisi Oonunercial operations is com- <br />plQtQd, NaTec expects to have an <br />operations workforce of 32 em- <br />ployees with a payroll/benefits <br />package totaling 51.3 million whilQ <br />another 12-15 contract employees <br />wiU be needed to haul the nahcolite <br />in trucks to the railhead loadottt. <br />Wanting to make the commutdfa <br />comfortable with the company's <br />plans, Stevenson provided a 30- <br />at~inute overview of where the project <br />%as and where it would be goir~, <br />"This is not a research a <br />development project. We have <br />deai~n done, the funding is the>~ <br />end we have most of the necessity <br />ler~its in hand while we're <br />apdeliog the rest." <br />Reviewing Nis work that has been <br />Planx for X20 Million Project <br />"This is not a research and development project. <br />We have the design done and the funding is there." <br />done in proving the sodium <br />technology so far, Stevenson pointed <br />to fhe four industrial tests that have <br />been completed at power plants <br />jiround the nation. The tests have <br />been very successful with the Public <br />Service company of Colorado re- <br />cently sigtung a contract with NaTec <br />[or Ure Cherokee power plant in <br />tknver which Stevenson believes <br />NiN be the company's first major <br />Soludbn Mining Techuology <br />While the project's goal is to <br />provide 94-96% pure which is <br />proven to take not only the sulphur <br />out of flue gases but nitrogenoxide <br />as well, it is certainly one of the <br />more environmentally clean opera- <br />tions h t has been planned. <br />g the 20-30. ,,_ Boise <br />-neh feet <br />ees <br />,, e <br />ere it w~ diseol a ~' <br />e rtehrdite which is estimated W <br />bed pure. The saturated brine <br />1ti~~jllpFployad back up to ~e <br />.~ , .......~7r - <br />surface where it will be cooled m <br />stages and recrystalized before it is <br />trucked down to the railhead near <br />Rifle. Approximately 15 truck trips <br />per day are anticipated with no truck <br />traffic on the weekends. <br />Tf you're expecting to see a big <br />operation, don't be surprised as <br />most of the project will be <br />underground. Anticipating produc- <br />ing up rA 125,000 tons.of necholite <br />peer=year; Ntlrac- er>;ioiEBY~'~s161g <br />200 mr4lion cubic feet oT~as per gear <br />along with 1.2 megawatts of <br />electricity while the recirculated <br />water consumption would use just <br />one gallon of water/minute per 1000 <br />tons of nahcolite. <br />Initially, only 40 acres of land <br />would be disturbed while over the <br />next 10-15 years, a 640-acre section <br />would ~ developed. <br />Contain tlns amgle square <br />mile is 1O•lb million tons of <br />recoverable nahcotite. All totaled, <br />I+iaTec holds over 8000 acres in <br />tealles. <br />'The market potenliat far ne`eu- <br />rite ie 1-ugpr" ~~ <br />L-W.~ <br />noted that the company doesn't need <br />proposed new clean air regulations <br />to justify the project. "We have <br />many, many year supply of nahcolite, <br />approaching almost 80 years." <br />NaTec plans call for one well site <br />with two wells initially which will <br />produce 25-50,000 tons of nahcolite <br />per year which would be spaced 1000 <br />feet apart and 60 feet wide. More <br />wells would be then brought on to <br />build up the company's goal of <br />125,000 tons per year. Each well <br />would produce around six tons per <br />hour. <br />Among flee permits that the <br />tg ypdating ja Rio Blanco <br />Count s speraal:,y,~e permit which <br />NaTec is m the proeess, of dotitg. <br />Today, Thursday, the county plan- <br />ning commission is planning to take <br />a tour of the site (the old ., <br />Multi-Minerals property which is <br />located within the Re-1 school <br />district boundaries) while they meet <br />later on that night to fot'maUy,tQView <br />the paperwork. It is anticipated chat <br />on March 26, the final county <br />permits will be issued .~ all goes <br />a r ' e r, <br />l~activity <br />., min <br />'k asin is ~w~- <br />