The Department of Energy late Friday renewed an emergency order to allow an oil-fired power plant in Maryland to operate beyond an annual limit designed to reduce pollution.
DOE in late July initially issued the order, which permits PJM Interconnection and Talen Energy to run a unit at the Wagner Generating Station above the 438 annual hours permitted by a 2019 consent decree. The new order expires at the end of the year.
“To ensure 65 million Americans in 13 states and D.C. do not experience blackouts in the coming winter months, I am issuing an emergency order for PJM Interconnection,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement. “Americans deserve reliable power regardless of whether the wind is blowing or the sun is shining and especially during a cold snap.”
The orders are part of a broad Trump administration push to keep fossil fuel power generation online amid a spike in electricity demand and rising electricity costs.
