Greg Zoeller, Wabash Valley Resources’ vice president of external affairs, announced Tuesday that the company has contracted Baker Hughes, an energy technology company, to drill two deep underground injection wells for carbon dioxide in West Terre Haute and Vermillion County.
Zoeller also apologized to the Vigo County Commissioners at their weekly meeting for requesting they sign off on the Community Benefit Agreement WVR had created.
Their signatures were not technically necessary, he said, and the request fueled anger among local residents who interpreted it as meaning that the commissioners supported the company’s plans. WVR’s CBA will proceed with no hands-on efforts from the commissioners.
“I’ll take the blame — I do have a higher respect for elected officials and I thought they might want to participate in directing the funds. I understand that it may have been awkward,” Zoeller said after the meeting, adding that WVR will continue to work with the commissioners on road improvement, infrastructure improvement and public safety plans.
Funds from the agreement of about $3 million per county will be dispersed by the Wabash Valley Community Foundation with input from non-elected community leaders, and will target areas with smaller populations, like New Goshen and Universal, which often don’t get major grant funding.
The federal government’s Justice40 Initiative details how energy providers can help disadvantaged communities, such as through a Community Benefit Agreement.
Baker Hughes
The focus at the meeting Tuesday, however, was on WVR recruiting Baker Hughes to build the underground injection wells.
“It’s a big day for Wabash Valley Resources,” Zoeller said. “This company, we’ve actually worked with for about four years. They helped with a lot of the design phase. They’re in charge of well development, so they’ll drill the wells, they’ll do all the monitoring, the safety part of it. They’re a major company, world class in terms of this area.”
He continued, “That it took a while for us to announce this doesn’t mean that they haven’t been working with us. They’ve been partners all along in the planning of this. They’ll be in charge of the monitoring all the safety equipment.
“That’s their expertise — our company is going to manufacture anhydrous ammonia for farmers and that’s what we’re going to be good at.”
Anhydrous ammonia is a widely used source of fertilizer that can be potentially dangerous if not handled properly. WVR’s fertilizer will supply the Eastern Corn Belt.
“The farmers in Indiana pay some of the highest prices for fertilizer” because it is not manufactured locally, but in the U.S. South, Russia and Ukraine, Zoeller said. “This will increase the supply tremendously. … Go out and talk to farmers, and they’re anxious to see anhydrous ammonia production in the Midwest.”
WVR will be able to supply fertilizer to all Hoosier farms at a lower price.
At the same time, Zoeller admitted, “Manufacturing anhydrous ammonia — everybody knows the risk, talk to any farmer, you’ve got to be careful about that. When you manufacture large amounts, you’re going to have to be prepared for problems with the anhydrous. … There are risks we’ve got to be prepared for.”
“It’s good to know that they teamed up with a huge organization that can do those safe well drills and be involved in this process,” Commissioner Chris Switzer said, adding that he didn’t know much about the company until the announcement was made that morning, prompting a quick search on Google.
“I think the community will be happy that they chose them, as well,” Switzer added.
‘Better conversations’
At the meeting, Vigo County Council President Todd Thacker said, “We could do more to educate the public. WVR should meet and have better conversations” with the public.”
Zoeller agreed.
“The fact that we have not done enough outreach to the community, I agree with that,” he said. “We’re hoping to have small meetings — maybe 10 or so people come out — we meet with the community that’s interested in learning what our process is. … If there’s any safety concerns, we can answer those questions.”
He added, “I understand the need for public communication. We’re happy to receive as much public input because we’re going to be good neighbors.
“I wish we had done a lot of things before now but there’s always going to be some people who will always not want something new. Some people don’t want any change … they’re nervous about new things and I understand. I appreciate that. … It’s a small portion of the community that didn’t want something new.”
Zoeller said the projects timetable will focus on financing and constructing and shipping equipment in 2024 and drilling the wells in 2025.
Since the project was announced last year, citizens have publicly expressed anger that WVR was able to embark on such an enterprise without more input from local leaders and residents alike and expressed concern about the wells’ environmental impact on the area.
“I still understand all of the concerns from the anti-WVR folks — we get all that,” Switzer said. “We’ve had some tough conversations with regulators on how (WVR will) control, maintain, educate the community and all the things that Wabash Valley Resources has to comply with for their project to take off. And according to all those regulators, they are following all the rules that are required to get this project off the ground.”
Deadline for submitting comments on WVR’s CBA was Monday, and the county released those comments for public inspection on Tuesday afternoon.
Community comments spanned 15 pages in very small type and can be found at bit.ly/3Lrrtru.