A state-of-the-art energy center being proposed in southern Connecticut would provide more than $7.9 billion in economic benefits to the state over the next quarter century, according to a study released Tuesday by the University of Connecticut's Center for Economic Analysis.

The study, commissioned by the energy center's developer, Maryland-based Competitive Power Ventures, also cites the creation of 2,300 jobs related to the construction phase of the project and the generation of 1,800 positions statewide in the years following its establishment.

Economist Fred Carstensen, CCEA director, said in a statement that the CPV Towantic Energy Center project proposed for Oxford "delivers dramatic economic benefits, benefits that will reverberate through Connecticut's economy, immediately and for decades to come." The project that significantly increases in-state power generation capacity for 750,000 residents statewide "translates into sustained stimulus that will strengthen Connecticut's economic health and competitiveness over the long run," he added.

Opponents, however, have cited concerns over the project's environmental impact and effect on home prices. They have gathered more than 1,500 signatures in a petition opposing final approval of the natural gas-fired power plant that still needs a go-ahead from the Connecticut Siting Council.

A public hearing on the energy plant proposal will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday in the Oxford High School Auditorium.

"If built, the plant will affect neighborhoods up to 2-3 miles away with vibration, noise, and 30 months of heavy construction traffic," according to an online petition site titled Stop Towantic Power. "Air pollution will directly impact homes within a 10-mile radius."

According to its opponents, the electricity-generation plant would release 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide and 190 tons of nitrogen dioxide into the atmosphere annually. But a memo from Chris Long, an air quality and environmental health specialist at Gradient Corp., said the maximum individual exposure to these hazards would be equivalent to such common experiences as mowing the lawn twice in a year or spending 26 minutes a day for a year driving a car.

Some opponents doubted the 805-megawatt plant, situated on 26 acres in the Woodruff Hill Industrial Park, would make much of an economic impact on the state, said CPV President Gary Lambert in a statement.

"We knew there would be regional and statewide benefits beyond the 500 on-site construction jobs and the 25 permanent positions at the plant, but it was not until we received CCEA's study results that we realized how extensive they would be," he said.

The CCEA projections indicate that between 2015 and 2040, the energy center will increase Connecticut's economic output by $7.85 billion, generating a similar amount of personal income for people in the state.

"This is good news for Southbury and other neighboring towns who weren't sure how this project will benefit us," Ed Edelson, first selectman of Southbury, said in a statement.

To read the study, go to http://ccea.uconn.edu.

l.howard@theday.com

Twitter: @KingstonLeeHow