Appeals Court Tosses DOE Order on Michigan Coal Plant — SkimNews
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- D.C. Circuit Court vacated the DOE's emergency order requiring Consumers Energy to delay retiring the 1,420-MW J.H. Campbell coal plant past its May 31, 2025 retirement date, ruling the move usurped state authority over generating resources.
- The court found no genuine "emergency" under the Federal Power Act's section 202(c), noting the Michigan Public Service Commission and MISO had approved the retirement after extensive reliability reviews.
- DOE had justified the order by citing "fragments" of two documents and a MISO presentation, but the court rejected this as a "sweeping conception" of emergency power that would let the department "pick its preferred power sources" in any state.
- Since the Campbell order, DOE has issued similar emergency orders for six other power plants — all but one coal-fired — reissuing each before expiration; the Campbell case is the first to reach a court ruling.
- Consumers Energy disclosed in a July 28 SEC filing that net compliance costs for the DOE emergency orders reached $259 million through June 30, after $239 million in MISO revenues.
- Earthjustice attorney Michael Lenoff said the court "rebuked the Trump administration's abuse of emergency powers," framing the orders as an effort to "advance a coal-friendly agenda" rather than address real emergencies.
Why it matters: The court's reasoning — that state regulators and grid operators, not federal agencies, assess long-term reliability — undercuts DOE's legal basis for the six similar emergency orders still in effect at other plants. Consumers Energy alone absorbed $259 million in net compliance costs; utilities facing tens of millions more could see relief depending on whether the Trump administration appeals.
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