INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Work is under way on a $2 billion coal-gasification plant along White River in Knox County.

Governor Mitch Daniels attended a ceremony marking the start of
construction at the site northeast of Vincennes today. He said the Duke Energy plant will be worth its high cost because its pollution-removal technologies will open more of southwestern Indiana's coal deposits for use as fuel.

Daniels says low-sulfur coals are currently being shipped in from other states to reduce air pollution at Indiana's power plants because much of the state's coal has a high sulfur content.

The new plant is scheduled to go online in 2012 using advanced
coal-gasification technology to produce power with far fewer emissions than conventional coal-fired plants. Daniels says it will also boost southwestern Indiana's economy.

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