Feeding a Giant

When the Atomic Energy Commission estimated the power requirements of its new $1.2 billion atomic bomb plant in Pike County, Ohio (TIME, Aug. 25), it seemed too big a job for private industry. More electrical energy would be needed than is used by New York City. But when AEC asked 15 private power companies to join forces to build and run the new generating facilities, they jumped at the chance. Last week their Ohio Valley Electric Corp. filed a proposal with the SEC to sell $420 million in bonds and notes, one of the biggest private utility financings of all time, and more than eight times the federal funds originally appropriated for TVA.*

Construction of the power stations to be operated at Gallipolis, Ohio and Madison, Ind. has been started out of the $20 million initial capital pooled by the power companies. To complete them and transmission lines, Ohio Valley Electric plans to sell $360 million of 3 3/4 % first mortgage bonds and $60 million in 4% notes to banks, insurance companies and pension funds.

The power plants will burn 7,500,000 tons of coal a year, and will have a capacity of 2,200,000 kw., of which the AEC will use 1,800,000 in producing the radioactive isotope U-235 at its new plant. The rest will be sold to private power users.

* TVA took over the Muscle Shoals project, on which $139.6 million had been spent up to August 1933. Congress appropriated $50 million for TVA in 1934, another $628 million in regular and supplemental appropriations through 1943.

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