By JIMMY LAWTON

OGDENSBURG – Ogdensburg City Councilor Daniel Skamperle is concerned about the state’s delayed action on providing a lease to AG-Energy that would allow the company to provide heat to the nearby prison and psychiatric center.

“If this doesn’t happen in 6 to 8 months, we are going to lose the plant,” he said.

AG-Energy, a company under contract with the state to provide heat to the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center, is looking to once again produce and sell electricity, but to do that it needs to extend it’s lease with the state. The company believes it would create short-term construction jobs and eventually add eight high paying full-time positions.

Skamperle said he is concerned that the state is stalling on the lease agreement and he fears it could jeopardize the future of AG-Energy.

“This is big for us,” he said, adding that its future is tied to the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center as well as one of the city’s prisons.

“I don’t want to lose a prison or a psych center because the state is just sitting on this,” he said. “I am kind of worried.”

City Manager Sarah Purdy said it’s possible the state is looking for other perspective tenants for the property. She said the state issued a request for information and came back with 3 to 5 potential organizations interested in leasing the property.

Purdy said the next phase should be a request for proposals, but she said that process seems to have been stalled.

AG-Energy has troubled past, but began making efforts in 2015 to make good with the city.

The plant formerly produced electricity using natural gas, but removed the generation turbines in 2007. That decision was made with hopes of converting the plant to biofuel, but those plans never came to fruition. The company also studied a hydro-turbine model, but found that also would not be cost efficient.

Ag-Energy has operated at a loss for several years in its effort to make good on the state contract to produce heat at the psychiatric center. Until recently the company had owed the city $655,629 in back taxes and an additional $97,862 in interest.

In an agreement approved by city council last year the interest was waived the interest fees in exchange for payment of the back taxes.

According to the Public Service Commission, AG-Energy’s facility began commercial operation in 1994 as a 79-megawatt cogeneration facility, selling electric output to Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation and steam to the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center.

The facility consisted of two gas turbine generating units, a steam turbine generating unit and two auxiliary boilers.

In 2007, AG-Energy removed the gas combustion turbines from service and, in 2010, put the steam turbine in protective lay-up. AG-Energy has maintained the equipment on site and performed maintenance activities to preserve the condition of the equipment and facility. AG-Energy now seeks to restart electric generation operation.