In a letter to the editor published in the Thursday, Aug. 24, edition of The Chronicle, Mike Hadaller, a Lewis County Public Utility District (PUD) commissioner, spoke to significant concerns he holds about a proposed hydrogen facility at TransAlta’s industrial park.
The facility would be run by Forescue Future Industries, a branch of the Australian mining company Fortescue tasked with finding non-fossil fuel energy forms.
In his letter, Hadaller writes that the facility would need an “enormous amount of our limited supply” of power, and that the cost to sustain the power “will be paid directly by our ratepayers.”
His letter is signed with his name and official title as an elected official. Though, one of his seatmates, Commissioner Ed Rothlin, on Friday said Hadaller’s opinion isn’t necessarily representative of the PUD commission as a whole.
At this point, Rothlin said, the PUD does not officially support or oppose the project.
“We all have a right to our own opinions and stances on things,” Rothlin said. “What the letter might have been missing is a clarification that this was an individual expressing their feelings and opinions and didn’t necessarily reflect the opinions of the other commissioners. I’m not saying where our stance will be down the road, but I think it’s important that any commissioner or a board member who does comment needs to make sure people understand that.”
Rothlin also addressed Hadaller’s concern for the ratepayers, saying the PUD, as long has he’s been on the board, “has always taken a stance, since I’ve been on the commission, that we don’t want residential to subsidize industry and that you need to carry your own weight and pay your own way.”
The PUD had its first official conversation with Fortescue in July, during which Hadaller asked Fortescue’s Seth Gottlund what the county stood to gain from the facility.
Gottlund said the area would see an increase in available property taxes to collect, high-paying local jobs and, of course, local availability of hydrogen.
Currently, Gottlund said there are markets for hydrogen as power generation, “mobility, transportation, ports and maritime” in Seattle and Portland. However, in Hadaller’s letter, he writes, “The cold truth is that hydrogen is not a competitive fuel in the United States.”
At this time, the PUD has no role in Fortescue's proposed facility, Rothlin said. If the facility is established, he said, “It’s the same role we would play with any industry that moves into Lewis County. Anybody. Taverns, churches, restaurants, lumber mills. Our responsibility is to provide power, that would be our role. I think what makes people nervous is that the industry requires more power than most.”
News releases from Fortescue on the proposal have yet to say it is undoubtedly confirmed. When it was first reported on by The Chronicle, executives asked that language in the story be changed from certain to “potential.” Rothlin also noted this on Friday, saying he, and the commission as an official entity, know “very little” about the project.
Gottlund’s presentation to the board in July was around 10 minutes long.
Hadaller’s letter to the editor is mostly critical of Richard DeBolt, director of the Economic Alliance of Lewis County and state Rep. Peter Abbarno, R-Centralia, for their roles in Fortescue’s consideration of the TransAlta area and advocated for the facility as a possible benefit to the local economy and environment. Though the Alliance has been working directly with Fortescue, Abbarno’s only connection, he said in a written response to The Chronicle, was “supporting the diversification of Washington state’s energy portfolio” as a member of the House Energy and Environment Committee, “and co-chair of the bipartisan Hydrogen Caucus, I have work on broad statewide policy involving all energy sources; not one project managed by one company.”
Hadaller’s letter also speaks to a “billion taxpayer dollars,” likely referring to a joint grant application from Oregon, Washington, Lewis County and local tribes for a $1 billion “hydrogen hub” grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Abbarno defended seeking out that money as a way to make the state’s energy grid more reliable, whereas Washington’s “electric or nothing” focus is “regressive … and can jeopardize reliable power.”
“I have never been contacted by Commissioner Hadaller to discuss any PUD issues or policies, including the proposed Hydrogen facility at TransAlta. Commissioner Hadaller’s baseless allegations, especially about ‘financial interest’ came out of left field,” Abbarno wrote in an email to The Chronicle. “It is disappointing when elected officials use the media to try and create ‘gotcha’ moments rather than communicate and work together for the betterment of Lewis County. Personal public attacks and allegations just take away from an otherwise legitimate discussion about Washington future energy policy and investment.”
He suggests Abbarno and DeBolt’s interest must be purely monetary and calls upon the Alliance to “open its books.”
Abbarno said he has no financial interest in the project, though.
PUD Commissioner Michael Kelly did not respond to The Chronicle’s request for comment.
Lewis County Commissioner Lindsey Pollock, too, has been critical of the facility proposal and hydrogen’s market potential. Lewis County News, a Winlock-based weekly print publication, also shared Hadaller’s letter on Facebook, which was then shared by Pollock.
Pollock criticized her current and former seatmates and Centralia Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston for signing a non disclosure agreement with the Alliance and Fortescue, saying she’s been unable to get “any answers” on various parts of the proposal.
Smith Johnston, though, said she worked with the Alliance outside of her role as mayor, through her consulting firm, after she “clarified with the city prior to engaging with the Alliance that consulting with them would not be a conflict.”
The TransAlta land is outside of city limits, she noted, and will not need Centralia City Council approval.
“Many councilors also work locally and being hired by local entities, as a part of our day jobs, so-to-speak, is common practice. My work ended in early 2022,” Smith Johnston wrote in a text to The Chronicle, later adding, “That said, I support the work to create a green energy economy in Lewis County.”
Asked on Friday if he would be interested in hosting a town hall between PUD commissioners, Lewis County commissioners, the Alliance and Fortescue for a “judgment free” question and answer period to potentially alleviate some concerns, DeBolt said, “I think it’s a great idea I will work on this. I think everything should have an open process.”
