Sierra Club Statement on FERC Decision Rejecting Centralia Coal Plant Cost-Recovery Plan

Federal energy regulators have rejected a plan by TransAlta, the owner of the Centralia coal plant in Washington state, to pass along costs for keeping the plant running to ratepayers. The plant was scheduled to retire, but the Trump administration has issued a series of emergency orders forcing it to stay available, most recently on September 11, requiring it to remain operational through December. Despite these orders, Centralia has not actually generated electricity since the first order was issued last year.

TransAlta had asked to recover more than $50 million in costs tied to keeping the plant on standby. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) turned down that request, which means those costs will not be charged to utility customers in the region. Sierra Club, which has challenged the emergency orders as an unlawful use of federal authority, called the decision a win for Northwest ratepayers.

For homeowners, this is less about your own house and more about what shows up on future electric bills if you get power from a utility tied to this plant. Had FERC approved the cost-recovery plan, those standby costs for an idle coal plant could have been passed on to customers. With the request denied, that particular charge won't land on ratepayers, though the broader fight over the emergency orders keeping Centralia open is continuing.