White Pine Energy Associates, LLC, a subsidiary of LS Power, announced the project in February 2004, with plans to begin construction in 2006, with the possibility of having it operational in 2010.
Also taken into consideration were plans by the city of Ely to own and operate the Nevada Northern Railway, as the plant would need a way to receive low-sulfur coal from Wyoming's Powder River Basin.
[6] In July 2004, LS Power chose a 1,300-acre (530 ha) site for the plant,[6] located 21 miles north of McGill, Nevada,[7] near Cherry Creek.
[10] Environmental impact statements (EIS) were underway in August 2004, after LS Power hired CH2M Hill as the main contractor, with EDAW as a subcontractor.
[11] The plant was estimated, by the Nevada State Commission on Economic Development, to generate over $100 million in tax revenue during construction and the first six years of its operation.
[10] In December 2004, Crawford said the power plant was on schedule as the company was preparing the EIS and focusing on obtaining right-of-ways from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
[12] The EIS was still being worked on in March 2005, while LS Power remained focused on the same site despite concerns about air quality being affected by the plant.
[18] In January 2006, Crawford said the project would proceed despite the recent announcement of another coal plant, the Ely Energy Center, proposed by Sierra Pacific Resources.
[3] That month, in response to LS Power's application for an air quality permit, the National Park Service warned state environmental officials that the power plant would hamper views and kill trout at the nearby Great Basin National Park, located 60 miles southeast of the proposed plant.
[36] In December 2007, LS Power was awaiting final approval of a draft air permit, which was delayed while the EPA reviewed concerns from an environmental group about the project threatening endangered species.
EPA spokesman Dante Pistone said, "It involves a question about the impact (of additional carbon dioxide) on coral in the Gulf of Mexico.
[40] In August 2008, the BLM approved LS Power to build a transmission line that would connect electrical grids located in northern and southern Nevada.
LS Power had yet to receive a final air permit, as the EPA was busy determining whether the plant complied with the Endangered Species Act.
LS Power stated that construction of the first 720-megawatt phase of the project could begin in late 2009, as long as the company received the air permit and other necessary government approvals.
[43][44] As of November 2008, LS Power was awaiting a record of decision from the BLM and a final permit from the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.
[45] Later that month, Reid requested that Gibbons "join with me in putting Nevada quickly on a cleaner plat toward a renewable energy and efficiency driven economy and safer future.
"[46] On December 17, 2008, Dynegy denied that the White Pine Energy Station was in jeopardy after an earlier report stated that the company was reevaluating its development of new power plants.
Milburn expected the project to receive a final air permit early in the year, as well as approval from the Public Utilities Commission by April 2009.
"[55] On March 5, 2009, LS Power announced that it was indefinitely postponing construction on the White Pine Energy Station due to a declining economy and increasing uncertainty regarding regulations.
[59] A July 2009 report from the Government Accountability Office confirmed that air quality and visibility at Great Basin National Park would be affected if either of the coal plants were built.