The Department of Energy issued an emergency order on Monday to allow an oil-fired power plant in Maryland to operate through late October “in exceedance of its operating limit.”
Talen Energy and the PJM Interconnection grid operator will run Unit 4 at the Wagner Generating Station in Maryland under the new terms to make sure regional power supply is sufficient to meet demand, DOE said.
“This order reduces the threat of power outages during peak demand conditions for millions of Americans,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement issued late Monday. “The Trump Administration remains committed to swiftly deploying all available tools and authorities to safeguard the reliability, affordability, and security of the nation’s energy system.”
The DOE order says Unit 4 was permitted to operate for 438 hours in a calendar year. The lifting of that restriction is necessary “due to a shortage of electric energy, a shortage of facilities for the generation of electric energy, and other causes,” the order says.
