I came across a news item in early April that not only caught my attention, it actually gave me hope that the various factions in the energy industry can work together to accomplish what the American Coal Council deems an essential next step in our country’s energy plan – the creation of a multi-faceted approach to satisfying our nation’s expanding energy needs.
The news flash in question concerned an update to the 2023 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) of Rocky Mountain Power (RMP), the subsidiary of PacifiCorp that operates in Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. Rocky Mountain Power suddenly restated its plans and is now considering building the second commercial scale carbon capture project in the U.S.
The company’s initial IRP, which was released in March 2023, called for the retirement of Utah’s last two remaining coal-fired power plants by 2032. That was anticipated.
But what was the surprise was the contents of the updated plan calling for Utah’s Hunter and Huntington plants to continue operating until 2036 and 2042, respectively, which reverts back to the vision laid out in RMP’s 2021 IRP. This new approach would also involve retrofits to several of its Wyoming coal plants, despite RMP’s previously stated concerns about the cost and viability of the technology.
RMP and its parent corporation said the change of plans were largely driven by developments concerning the Environmental Protection Agency’s Ozone Transport Policy, which is designed to prevent ozone-causing pollution generated in one state from increasing the ozone levels in adjacent states. Notably, last July the United States Court of Appeals granted a stay in a case brought against the EPA by the state of Utah, preventing enforcement of policy which could have put limits on how much coal the two Utah plants could burn — while the lawsuit plays out.
But there are other reasons, too. They include extensions to the assumed operational life of new natural gas generating resources, as well as energy storage acquisition strategy, forecast load demand, higher coal prices, and natural gas and wholesale power market price updates. In other words, which all point to the need for diversity of energy options in a market that demands multiple resources.
Stated directly in the IRP, “PacifiCorp’s coal resources will continue to play a pivotal role in following fluctuations in renewable energy as the remaining coal units approach retirement dates,” the company said in a statement. “EPA’s approval of Wyoming’s ozone plan and the stay of EPA’s disapproval of Utah’s ozone plan results in fewer restrictions on coal-fired operation than were assumed in the 2023 IRP.”
It is noted that the additional investments in the updated plan also include new wind and solar resources, the conversion of two coal-fired units to natural gas peaking units, growth in demand response and energy efficiency programs, an advanced nuclear resource and energy storage.
RMP’s decision to extend the retirement of their two Utah power plants and also-employing technology on their Wyoming plants should be a blueprint for other utilities to ensure reliable electricity for an ever-expanding energy market. The goal of our national energy policy should be to ensure that we have the power to drive economic growth, provide shelter and comfort for our citizens and ensure that electricity is consistently available when needed. Elimination of the United States coal-fired electrical generation fleet does not accomplish those objectives – but energy diversification most likely will.
Perhaps, but our point is that coal needs to be included in a balanced national energy plan.
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