Power plant operators in 13 Midwestern and mid-Atlantic U.S. states plus the District of Columbia are hoping to shut down more than 3,200 megawatts of coal capacity this year, on the heels of another 1,024 MW they retired last year.
The business decisions are part of a wider trend that will see coal capacity in the territory covered by PJM Interconnection fall from about 50,000 to 25,000 megawatts by 2030, and about 22,000 MW by 2036, Utility Dive reports.
Much of the current activity comes from Akron-based Energy Harbor, which announced last month that it aims to shut down all its remaining fossil capacity by the end of next year. Last month, the company said it would shutter or sell its 1,278-MW Pleasants coal plants in West Virginia, plus just over 1,500 MW of coal and diesel capacity in Ohio, by the middle of next year.
