Published: February 15, 2022 |

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Retirement dates for Wyoming’s coal-fired power plants have continued to advance, in spite of state lawmakers’ repeated efforts to keep them operating.

Another legislative attempt to save them is headed to the upcoming budget session, this time specifically targeting the Dave Johnston Power Plant, near Glenrock, and the Jim Bridger Power Plant, near Rock Springs. Both facilities are operated by Rocky Mountain Power, Wyoming’s largest public utility.

For coal plants retiring by mid-2027, Senate File 64 would require public utilities to install carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) technology at one or more units, or sell the facility to a third party that would install the technology.

If the utility opted to sell the plant, it would be required to continue purchasing a similar amount of electricity from the new owner, at the discretion of the Wyoming Public Service Commission.

“The utility at least has to inquire about selling (the power plant) to someone that would just want it for the carbon. It just adds another piece to the legislation we’ve been working on for years and years and years,” said Rep. Aaron Clausen, R-Converse County, a co-sponsor of Senate File 64.

Bridger units 1 and 2 are set to close next year for conversion to natural gas, though the remaining two units won’t shutter until 2037. And while the two coal-burning units at Kemmerer’s Naughton Power Plant are expected to go offline in 2025, Rocky Mountain Power and nuclear developer TerraPower have announced plans to build a next-generation nuclear facility at the site.

All four Dave Johnston units are scheduled to retire in 2027. The plant was considered, but not selected, for the nuclear facility.

“Anything we can do to extend its life is useful,” Clausen said.

The retirements have been “driven in part by ongoing cost pressures on existing coal-fired facilities and dropping costs for new resource alternatives,” according to the utility’s 2021 integrated resource plan. Greenhouse gas emissions were another important factor.

Numerous bills intended to stop coal plants from retiring have been introduced in recent years. Several have made it into law.

Senate File 159, passed in 2019, requires utilities to attempt to sell the facilities before retiring them. House Bill 200, passed in 2020, allows them to shift some of the costs of installing CCUS to ratepayers. House Bill 166, passed in 2021, orders them to prove that coal closures won’t harm ratepayers or grid reliability.

The three laws prevent utilities from recovering their investments in new power sources, including renewables and gas-fired power plants, until they’ve complied with the coal obligations. Senate File 64 would do the same.

“We’ve worked on this several different ways. Tried to build a structure in the statute, kind of a guide on this stuff,” Clausen said.

The bill could pave the way for Glenrock Energy, a Casper-based petroleum company, to use the carbon captured from Dave Johnston for enhanced oil recovery — pumping carbon dioxide into wells to boost output — at its nearby Big Muddy oil field. Rocky Mountain Power has previously rejected the company’s efforts to purchase the plant.

“These oil fields actually were in bankruptcy twice. The only economic viability of this field is enhanced oil recovery. And so they need a source of carbon to make these oil fields work for them,” said Shannon Anderson, staff attorney for the Powder River Basin Resource Council.

Clausen believes keeping the plant open for enhanced oil recovery would be a win for everyone. But according to Anderson, it’s a flawed plan. Dave Johnston, she said, isn’t a good candidate for carbon capture. Its 2027 closure has been expected for a long time.

“It’s not an early retirement. It’s different than, say, Naughton and Bridger. It is actually the end of the useful life of that coal plant,” said Clausen.

Carbon capture isn’t Anderson’s only concern. She believes utilities need more time to comply with Public Service Commission rule-making on Senate File 159 and House Bill 200, including filing a carbon capture plan due late next month, before the requirements change again.

Tiffany Erickson, media relations manager for Rocky Mountain Power, expressed similar misgivings in a Friday email to the Star-Tribune.

“The utility is actively exploring CCUS, Erickson said, including “finding proven and effective technologies, establishing the right partnerships and securing federal and state funding for potential CCUS projects,” said Erickson.

“We believe there is uncertainty and unresolved questions regarding how Senate File 64 might conflict with current law, as well as concerns with how the bill may adversely impact our ability to realize incentives and enter into productive partnerships,” added Erickson.

Senate File 64 instructs the Public Service Commission to maintain a list of retiring coal plants on its website and accept applications for operating CCUS at those plants. After receiving an application, the commission would, “upon request of any party,” hold a hearing on whether to require the installation.

In making its decision, the commission must “consider the public interest, any effect on customers, the person’s ability to install and operate (CCUS) technology, the parties involved in the application, the effect on the economy in Wyoming, potential tax revenue to be generated from the proposed installation … and any other factor deemed relevant by the commission.”

The bill, Clausen said, wouldn’t give the Public Service Commission more power, but would update its ability to regulate a newer technology.

Anderson worries it would give the commission a lot more power. She’s not convinced the state has the authority to bypass the utility and approve the installation of carbon capture technology.

“That’s not good process. It’s borderline, you know, we’re basically taking state ownership of these coal plants,” Clausen said.

Source: KPVI

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