Michigan Utility to Phase Out Coal by 2025, 15 Years Early, Install 8 GW of Solar by 2040

Michigan’s biggest energy supplier will phase out coal in 2025, 15 years ahead of its original schedule, embrace low-carbon electricity options, and donate to a fund for low-income utility customers under a proposed settlement with Attorney General Dana Nessel.

The deal between the state and Consumers Energy, which supplies electricity to about 1.9 million people and fossil gas to 1.8 million, must still be approved by the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC), Michigan Advance reports.

New!

“Not only is this settlement a win for our environment, it’s also a win for Michigan ratepayers who have struggled to stay current on their bills,” Nessel said Wednesday. “This agreement was truly a collaborative effort from all involved parties and a symbol of what we can achieve when stakeholders work together to create positive change.”

Consumers first proposed the accelerated coal phaseout in a June, 2021 revision to its integrated resource plan that is still before the MPSC for approval. Now, the deal with Nessel’s office “would also see nearly 8,000 megawatts of solar energy built by 2040 and the approval of a proposed battery deployment program, along with other actions to further reduce carbon emissions,” Michigan Advance writes.

“It would also provide direct financial resources to ratepayers. Consumers Energy has agreed to donate US$5 million this year to a fund for low-income utility customers, which could add up to a total of $33 million in assistance over a 14-year period with the addition of yearly $2 million donations.”

If all goes according to plan, Consumers will be generating about 90% of its electricity from clean sources by 2040.

“This is a groundbreaking agreement that ensures Consumers Energy is meeting the urgency demanded by the climate crisis while creating homegrown green jobs,” said Mike Berkowitz, senior representative with the Michigan Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign.