A start-up energy company has expressed an interest in building a power generation plant in southeastern Hancock County, a county commissioner posted on Facebook last week.
Hancock County Commissioner Bill Spalding posted in a private Facebook group that representatives from Chesco Energy had approached county commissioners about the prospects of building a gas turbine power generation plant in Blue River Township — more specifically, around County Roads 750 East and 200 South, near Pleasant View Cemetery.
The post, originally made in the Facebook group “Eastern Hancock School Happenings,” was copied and posted by other residents and shared across various groups, including the community Facebook group “Westland – Blue River Township Indiana.” Spalding confirmed the veracity of the post to the Daily Reporter. The plan is still in its preliminary stages, and no official proposals have been brought forward.
Chesco Energy started up earlier this year, looking to develop natural gas power projects in states with increasing electrical demand. The company’s website says it is “enabling the energy tradition” and meeting the challenge in the surge of electricity demand driven by generative AI and data centers. Chesco hopes to create a balanced and reliable power grid backed by thermal and renewable energy.
“While renewables are an important component of a sustainable future, the evolving market dynamics underscore the essential role of hybrid power facilities — combining both battery technology and thermal generation to ensure grid reliability and support the smooth integration of renewables and meeting increasing electricity demand,” the company’s website says.
Company leaders have previously worked in various major energy companies, including Duke Energy, NRG, Washington Group International and Exelon.
According to federal data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, natural gas made up 40.5% of the utility-scale electricity generation in Indiana for 2024, which is second of all power generation in the state, only behind coal. The nearest natural gas power stations are one operated by Duke Energy in Henry County and one operated by Indiana Municipal Power Agency in Anderson.
Representatives from Chesco recently presented plans, Spalding said in his post, which include evaluating several sites across Indiana with proximity to gas and power utility crossings and the ability to secure a location by only talking to a minimal amount of homeowners.
One of the landowners in the general area Chesco is targeting is Tyner Pond Farm. Opened in 2010 to implement regenerative farming practices and raising chicken in pasture environments, the farm has grown since its opening. Owner and founder Chris Baggott said if a plant was built in the area, it would disrupt the biosphere and the environment Tyner Pond Farm has created over the past 15 years.
He said the food system is moving toward localization, and that maintaining the agricultural land on the eastern side of the county needs to be an important priority for county officials.
“People think this isn’t going to be disruptive, but it will be very disruptive for operations. It’s all about soil health, microbiology and the healthy biosystem that allows our cattle to be healthy, without having to have drugs, without having to have vaccines, antibiotics, etc.,” Baggott said.
In his Facebook post, Spalding said one major concern of the proposed development is the proposed height of the vent stacks, which could go up to 200 feet tall. For comparison, the Hancock County Courthouse is 181 feet tall.
“Additionally, this plant is intended as a pass-through facility, meaning it would not provide power to the local community, nor would it bring substantial employment (an estimated 50 jobs at most),” Spalding said in his post.
Blue River Township Trustee Brandon Jones said he first heard about the potential plans for the area about a month ago from local farmers. He said he then told Spalding about the potential development in the township.
Jones, elected trustee for the largely rural township in 2022, said he did not see the benefit of a potential power generation plant in the county if it wasn’t going to directly benefit the county.
“I understand that progress is going to happen. I don’t like the idea of it being in the backyard,” he said. “I don’t see how it’s going to benefit Hancock County, period, let alone people from Blue River Township.”
In his online post, Spalding said once Chesco reached out to local landowners to gather their input, it planned to report its findings, and later schedule a public meeting with commissioners to discuss the proposal.
In late 2023, Hancock County approved a new version of the county’s comprehensive plan, which is supposed to be a guide for future growth and development in the county. In the plan, the future land use map shows the area around County Roads 750 East and 200 South recommended for remaining agricultural land.
County commissioners have used the land use map in making crucial decisions about economic development in the county. In July, after several months of public interest, commissioners put an end to considering a proposal to turn 775 acres of agricultural farmland into a data center in Buck Creek Township. One major reason why the commissioners dismissed the proposal is because the area proposed for the development was not an appropriate site for such a project according to the comprehensive plan.
Baggott believes the county will not give Chesco the go-ahead to build in Hancock County, referencing the county’s comprehensive plan. However, he is worried that if county officials reject it, the company could partner with a utility company and petition the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission to override the county’s decision.
“That’s a little bit worrisome. I think so far, the government at the state level has been very supportive of county rights of putting appropriate development in appropriate places. Our county has designated spots for this kind of thing,” he said.
Jones noted that Blue River Township does not have the infrastructure necessary to support a power generation plant. He said if the plant was built, the company would need to significantly upgrade the infrastructure in the area. Jones said he would prefer for the area to stay as farmland.
“We also have to consider water and sewer and well. If they need water, they’d have to use a well. If you dig into somebody else’s aquifers, it could mess up other people’s wells in surrounding areas. There’s a lot to consider with that,” he said.
For Baggott, at the end of the day, he just wants to make sure the comprehensive plan is being followed and the eastern third of the county is being kept as rich, fertile agricultural farmland.
“We don’t want to see what we have created destroyed,” he said.