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One Of The D.C. Area's Last Coal Plants Will Close Next Year
This will mean the abandonment of the portion of the branch line that serves the plant.
JUN 22, 8:16 AM
One Of The D.C. Area’s Last Coal Plants Will Close Next Year
Jacob Fenston https://twitter.com/JacobFenston
The smokestacks of Morgantown Generating Station rise above the Potomac River, about 40 miles south of D.C. It’s among the last coal-fired power plants in the region, and has a long history of pollution. Now, energy company GenOn Holdings says the plant will shut down within a year. Environmentalists and others cheered the decision, but also questioned the company’s commitment to cleaning up the site.
{snip}
The plant was already slated for closure. In December, GenOn announced it would shutter the Morgantown facility in 2027. Now the company is speeding up the timeline, and also closing two other coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania and Ohio. ... Last year, GenOn retired two coal plants in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County. Two other coal plants in Anne Arundel County are slated to close in 2025.
Nationally, coal has been rapidly losing ground to cheaper, cleaner natural gas and renewables such as wind and solar. In Maryland, about 11% of power generated comes from renewables, while 38% comes from the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power station. Under state law, by 2030, 50% of electricity purchased in the state must come from renewables.
One Of The D.C. Area’s Last Coal Plants Will Close Next Year
Jacob Fenston https://twitter.com/JacobFenston
The smokestacks of Morgantown Generating Station rise above the Potomac River, about 40 miles south of D.C. It’s among the last coal-fired power plants in the region, and has a long history of pollution. Now, energy company GenOn Holdings says the plant will shut down within a year. Environmentalists and others cheered the decision, but also questioned the company’s commitment to cleaning up the site.
{snip}
The plant was already slated for closure. In December, GenOn announced it would shutter the Morgantown facility in 2027. Now the company is speeding up the timeline, and also closing two other coal-fired power plants in Pennsylvania and Ohio. ... Last year, GenOn retired two coal plants in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County. Two other coal plants in Anne Arundel County are slated to close in 2025.
Nationally, coal has been rapidly losing ground to cheaper, cleaner natural gas and renewables such as wind and solar. In Maryland, about 11% of power generated comes from renewables, while 38% comes from the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power station. Under state law, by 2030, 50% of electricity purchased in the state must come from renewables.