NEWS: Ameren Missouri is asking customers to pay for a 2-GW gas plant—before it comes online.

The details: Ameren wants the Missouri PSC’s permission to apply the Construction Work in Progress (CWIP) financing scheme to its proposed gas plant. Under this scheme, utilities can recover costs for generation and transmission before they come online. It’s now permitted in over 40 states, including Missouri (which reversed a five-decade CWIP ban last year).

The conflict: Ameren says CWIP can reduce customer charges by lowering some financing costs, but consumer advocates disagree. After all, the CWIP scheme hasn’t had the best PR: Georgia households have paid roughly $1K each in CWIP charges since 2009 due to Vogtle nuclear reactor delays.