The announcement that the federal government will allocate $100 million to the proposed coal gasification project near Gilberton is astonishing news. Think about it. $100 million on a single project. Amazing.

What is even more mindboggling is that the project will cost around $600 million. Over a half-billion-dollar project in Schuylkill County. And the first of its kind in the United States and in the Western Hemisphere. Not bad. Not bad at all.

If getting the federal and state funding was tough, it probably will be even more difficult to get the private financing to cover the rest of the $465 million to fund the project. Even though the technology is proven, there is a financial risk involved. Assuming groundbreaking occurs in the spring of 2004, following by 30 months of construction, the plant may be in operation by the end of 2006. What will the world be like by then? How will economic and political conditions impact the price of crude oil?

Those are questions with no answers. Essentially, the facility will begin operations owing $465 million to those who provided the financing, be it banking institutions through loans or private investors. Loans carry interest payments and investors want some return on their investments. However, the world market will determine what a barrel of diesel fuel is worth in 2006 and beyond. Will it be high enough for the gasification plant to sell its diesel fuel to pay back the debt and pay for the general operational expenses like salaries, benefits, maintenance, etc.?

Of course, it may turn out that the market price of oil may be much higher than the break-even barrel price for the plant, something that would be a definite positive to investors. However, there is no sure thing, no crystal ball, no Miss Cleo to make a prediction to stake one's financial future on.

It's an investment risk John W. Rich Jr. knows. His company Waste Management Processors Inc. will be answerable to those investors. It's a lot of money riding on a dream. It's a risk the fainthearted rarely take.

We're sure that when the grant announcement became public on Tuesday, there was plenty of grumbling and grinding of teeth from the anti-Rich Family crowd. Maybe even a few began sticking pins in their Jack Rich voodoo dolls.

There are those in the county with a bias against the family and corporation and will oppose anything proposed by any Rich family member no matter how beneficial it will be to the county economy. Unfortunately, there is this undertone in Schuylkill County that makes devils of those business people, those entrepreneurs, who have big dreams and act on them, who work hard toward a goal, earn their successes and profit from them. One wonders if there isn't a hint of jealousy involved here. Profit is not a dirty word.