The Department of Energy (DOE) issued an emergency order on Dec. 16 directing TransAlta to continue operating a unit of a coal power plant in Washington state that was scheduled for closure at year’s end.
The order, signed by Energy Secretary Chris Wright, directs TransAlta to keep unit 2 of the Centralia Generating Station running as the DOE seeks to secure affordable power for the Northwestern region—which includes Montana, Oregon, Washington state, and parts of northern California and Idaho— during the cold winter months.
The DOE stated that the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) determined the region is likely to need external assistance during extreme winter weather, when thermal plant outages and adverse wind turbine conditions strain local resources….