Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Search

Groups Contesting Ruling on Coal-Fired Power Plant

Shutterstock
A coal-fired power plant.

By Vince Conti

As officials in New Jersey are being accused of prematurely closing five coal-fired plants and one nuclear reactor without sufficient electric generation capacity to replace what was lost, the federal Department of Energy is being threatened with litigation for using emergency powers to keep a coal-fired plant in Michigan operating past its agreed-upon decommission date.

In May, the Department of Energy invoked the Federal Power Act’s section that gives it the authority to order power plants to continue operation despite plans to close down. It requires that DOE Secretary Chris Wright determine that an energy emergency exists and that the 1,560-megawatt, coal-fired plant in West Olive, Michigan, needs to remain in operation to help address the demand for electric power.

Wright made his determination of emergency need based on the North American Electric Reliability Corp.’s summer reliability assessment issued May 14 and the corporation’s capacity auction results released in April. The corporation is a nonprofit international regulatory authority responsible for ensuring the reliability and security of the bulk power system in North America.

Environmental groups like the Sierra Club, along with Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, the Midwest version of grid operator PJM Interconnection in New Jersey, have all maintained no emergency exists and that the Midwest has sufficient reserves to meet summer demand.

The groups see the DOE order as an attempt to keep coal-fired generating plants open. A Sierra Club press release said, “There is no energy emergency in our country – and certainly no shortage of power plants in Michigan or in MISO.”

The groups have given the DOE 30 days to respond to a request for a hearing or they threaten to challenge the emergency order in court.

DOE has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, an independent agency of the government, to determine how Consumers Energy, the owner of the West Olive plant, is to be paid for keeping its operations open after a planned close.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.

Something on your mind? Spout about it!

Spout submissions are anonymous!

600 characters remaining

Check out the new Spout Off!

Most Read

Print Editions

Recommended Articles