Company aims to power WV National Guard at Hobet site

A renewable energy producer wants to develop an electrical generation system that does not require fossil fuels to power the West Virginia National Guard's training installation at Rock Creek, an official said.

Green Line Energy is the first entity not tied to the National Guard to announce that it wants to setup operations on the 12,000-acre site of Rock Creek, located on the former Hobet 21 surface coal mine between Boone and Lincoln counties, The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported Tuesday.

Delegate Rodney Miller, D-Boone, said the company introduced itself to the Boone County Commission on Tuesday to outline what its goals are and establish a relationship with officials early in the process.

The company can run a community off a truck, Miller said. They have developed a way to produce electricity with a combination of wind, solar and hydrogen.

Green Line will develop a similar system of electrical generation at an existing National Guard building at Rock Creek, the delegate said.

County Community and Economic Development Corp. Director Kris Mitchell said the company needs to go through a feasibility study with the National Guard before its power is used for military purposes.

Green Line Energy CEO Daniel Hicks told the newspaper in an email that he was unavailable for an interview Tuesday and did not respond to their follow-up questions regarding the project's cost, estimated launch date or projected numbers.