US EditionDepartment of Energy Mandates Centralia Unit 2 Remain Available for Operation for Additional 90 Days
The Department of Energy cited reliability concerns to keep the last Washington coal plant operational despite abundant hydropower and a planned shutdown.
- On March 17, 2026, the DoE issued a second emergency order requiring Centralia Unit 2 to remain available for 90 days until June 14, 2026, TransAlta confirmed.
- The DoE cited 'reliability' when ordering, despite regional analysis showing hydropower has carried most of the load over the last three months, EDF analysis found.
- TransAlta says the unit hasn't run in three months, despite the order, and studies link the plant to $42 million in community health costs since 2015.
- Keeping plants ready requires costly repairs, and a similar order left Michigan's Campbell plant with $42,000,000 in readiness and repair costs borne by utility customers.
- Coal now supplies around 17% of U.S. electricity, while analysts say coal's health damages cost 13 times the electricity it produces nationally.
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12 Articles
Earthjustice & Sierra Club Blast Trump Administration Order to Keep Washington’s Last Coal Plant Open - CleanTechnica
Washington residents deserve cleaner air and more affordable, reliable, clean energy. Seattle, WA — Last night, the Department of Energy (DOE) renewed an emergency order forcing the TransAlta coal plant in Centralia to remain open, despite a challenge in federal court to overturn the Trump administration’s original illegal order. “The Department of Energy cannot ... [continued] The post Earthjustice & Sierra Club Blast Trump Administration Order…
Globe Newswire
Department of Energy Mandates Centralia Unit 2 Remain Available for Operation for Additional 90 Days
CALGARY, Alberta, March 17, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TransAlta Corporation (TransAlta or the Company) (TSX: TA) (NYSE: TAC) confirms that its subsidiary,...
Energy Dept keeps demanding a coal plant stay open that’s not even running
The Department of Energy issued a second "emergency" order to keep the last coal plant in Washington open for another 90 days, doing its best to raise electricity and health costs for central Washington. But nobody wants it open – including the owner of the plant, who hasn't operated it at all in the last 3 months since its planned closure, citing "flush" electricity supply from the state's ample hydropower resources. more . . .
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