Donald Trump Illegally Extends Life of the Coal-Fired Craig Unit 1, Driving Up Electricity Bills and Increasing Pollution

DENVER- Yesterday, the Trump administration issued an "emergency" orderto force utilities to operate Craig Unit 1 against their will, past the Dec. 31 retirement deadline that the utilities had decided upon and their state regulators had approved. Trump's actions to prop up an uneconomic coal plant will drive up the cost of electricity in Colorado and throughout the West. Craig Unit 1 is owned by three Colorado utilities-Tri-State, Xcel, and PRPA-along with PacifiCorp and Salt River Power.

Historically, these emergency orders-authorized by Section 202(c) of the Federal Powers Act-have been used exclusively during acute extreme weather events and wartime. But Trump is now using this obscure federal law to prop up aging, expensive coal plants.

In May, the Trump administration forced the J.H. Campbell plant in Michigan and the Eddystone power plant to stay online past their planned operation. According to data released by Campbell's parent company, the Campbell extension has cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The Trump administration has also ordered the gas- and oil-fired Eddystone plant and the coal-fired Culley and Schahfer plants to remain open past their scheduled retirement dates. The Sierra Club is actively challenging the Campbell and Eddystone orders, including filing at the D.C. Court of Appeals over the DOE's failure to respond to a rehearing request regarding J.H. Campbell.

A recent reportby Grid Strategies shows that forcing Craig Unit 1 to operate past the retirement deadline that its owners had agreed upon will cost approximately $85 million per year-costs that customers in Colorado and neighboring states will be forced to pay.

In response, Sierra Club Colorado Chapter Director Margaret Kran-Annexstein issued the following statement:

"Trump is playing politics with coal, and average Coloradans who are already struggling to pay their household bills will be hurt the most. Coal is dirty and expensive, and that's why the utilities and state regulators had decided to retire Craig Unit 1. Coloradans deserve affordable, clean energy and honest leadership, not a Trump tax on their bills."

Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Director Laurie Williams added:

"In the midst of an affordability crisis, Donald Trump is forcing Americans to pay millions more dollars on utility bills-all to bolster the dying coal industry. Americans should be able to spend their hard-earned dollars on rent, groceries, school supplies, and other essentials, not to keep a dirty, expensive, unnecessary coal plant online.

"These sham emergency orders have no basis, and their only purpose is to boost profits for Donald Trump's buddies in the coal industry. Trump and his administration have once again betrayed our communities."

About the Sierra Club

The Sierra Club is America's largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit https://www.sierraclub.org.