LANSING – Gov. Jennifer Granholm delivered a body blow to Michigan’s construction industry during her State of the State address on Feb. 3.

One of the few potential bright spots in the state’s economy has been the anticipated construction of several coal-burning power plants around the state. About $6 billion to $10 billion dollars in construction of new plants have been in the planning stages – until Granholm turned out their lights, for now, in favor of a green energy plan.

“So here’s our next aggressive goal,” Granholm said in her speech. “By the year 2020, Michigan will reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for generating electricity by 45 percent. We will do it through increased renewable energy, gains in energy efficiency and other new technologies. You heard me right: a 45 percent reduction by 2020.”

The building trades, Consumers Energy, and other private concerns like Wolverine Power that are underwriting coal-burning power plants wish they hadn’t “heard her right.”

“The governor threw us under the bus,” said Patrick Devlin, chief elected officer of the Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council. “These were power plant projects that were in the pipeline, worth billions of dollars, and ready to provide jobs that we desperately need. Our people are ready to build them, right now. Where she’s coming from with this proposal, in this economy – it’s beyond me.”

Granholm’s plan doesn’t necessarily stop, but will certainly delay the state permitting process on proposals to build coal-burning plants in or near Bay City, Holland, Midland and Rogers City. Three other plants were also being considered. The governor has basically thrown a new wrinkle into the state permitting process for coal-burning plants.

According to the Associated Press: “she is slowing down the permitting process and raising the bar for approval, requiring regulators to evaluate if Michigan needs more power and if alternatives to coal-fired electricity would better serve the state. That ultimately means some plants probably won’t be built as Michigan relies more on electricity from wind turbines and other alternative fuel sources.”

Consumers Energy spokesman Jeff Holyfield said a state Department of Environmental Quality permit to build a new $2 billion coal-burning plant on the grounds of the existing Karn-Weadock plant near Bay City was “literally expected here in weeks, or even days, but now we’ve been told it’s on hold.” Construction was expected to start as early as late 2010.

“We just think it’s an ill-advised policy,” Holyfield said. “Anything that delays construction of new baseload plants means higher prices for customers and importing more energy from the marketplace. If Michigan is importing energy we’re exporting jobs.”

Granholm offered further details during her speech that are leaving building trades leaders seething. “Instead of investing in new power plants,” the governor said, “they (utilities and power plant owners) will invest in the products and technologies that allow us to use far less energy in our homes. Everything from fuel efficient furnaces to LED light bulbs will produce lower bills for Michigan consumers and more jobs for Michigan workers.”

She added: “The third way we’ll create jobs through our aggressive 45-by-20 goal is to create the Michigan Energy Corps to put thousands of unemployed Michigan citizens back to work this year, weatherizing homes, schools and other public buildings, installing renewable energy technology, and turning our abundant natural resources into renewable fuels.”

An irate Devlin said an “Energy Corps” need not apply when it comes to hiring for that work. “Why does every politician out there think that anybody who is unemployed can be turned into a construction worker?” he said. “I know exactly where she can find all the unemployed building trades workers this state is going to need.”

Granholm’s proposal came after a successful, exhaustive, bipartisan effort by a group called “Protect Michigan,” which included building trades unions, utilities and other groups. Their goal: overturn Public Act 141, a state law adopted during the Engler Administration which deregulated utility service in Michigan, but also handcuffed the ability of the utilities like Consumers Energy and DTE Energy to build new power plants.

Last fall, state Republicans and Democrats came up with a plan to partially re-regulate state electrical providers, opening the door for new plant construction. Michigan hasn’t built a new baseload coal-burning plant since 1984.

DTE Energy spokesman John Austerberrry said that utility does not have plans to construct any new coal-burning plants. However, he said DTE Energy is in the permitting process (which could take 10 years) to build a new nuclear plant on the grounds of the Fermi 2 plant near Monroe. He said that process is not affected by Granholm’s plan.

“That was a major battle to get Public Act 141 overturned,” said Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council President Patrick “Shorty” Gleason. “We had to convince the people in Michigan, convince legislators, that what we were doing would lower electrical rates and bring in more jobs. So there’s a credibility issue here too. I just don’t know what she’s thinking right now.”