Coal plant forced to stay open due to emergency order isn’t even running

In the United States, the viability of coal power generation is facing significant challenges, with many plants shutting down due to the rise of more affordable renewable energy sources and natural gas. In an effort to counter this trend, the Trump administration has employed various tactics, the most straightforward being orders for coal plants slated for closure to remain operational. The Department of Energy has utilized the Federal Power Act alongside a Trump executive order declaring an energy emergency to prevent the shutdown of coal facilities across the nation. These directives have been accompanied by numerous optimistic press releases, emphasizing that the actions were primarily aimed at maintaining grid reliability. The latest announcement, issued on Monday, pertains to the TransAlta Centralia Coal Plant in Washington, which was originally set to be converted to natural gas last year. An emergency order from the Department of Energy allowed it to stay operational through winter, but that order was set to end yesterday. With the new directive, the plant will continue operations until mid-June. According to the press release, this measure is intended to ensure that residents in the Northwestern region have access to affordable, reliable, and secure electricity. However, the Environmental Defense Fund has scrutinized the actual output from the TransAlta Centralia Coal Plant, the last coal facility in its grid segment. Data from the Energy Information Administration reveals that in January and February, coal generated a mere 8 megawatt-hours—an amount of energy that could be produced by residential solar panels in about eight months. The EDF noted that this low output aligns with the plant's role of simply being available to generate power if needed, rather than actively contributing to energy production.