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DOE Acts to Ensure Key Coal-fired Power Plants Are Available in MISO to Supply Peak Summer Demands

LCG, May 18, 2026--The U.S. Secretary of Energy today issued an emergency order to address critical grid reliability issues in the Midwest anticipated this summer. The order is in effect beginning on May 19, 2026, through August 16, 2026. The emergency order directs the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), in coordination with Consumers Energy, to ensure that the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant (Campbell Plant) in West Olive, Michigan shall take all steps necessary to remain available to operate and to minimize costs for the region.

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EPA Announces Proposed Rule Action to Revise ELG's and Support Reliable, Affordable Coal-fired Power Plants

LCG, May 14, 2026--The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that it is proposing a rule to revise wastewater limits, known as effluent limitations guidelines (ELG), for steam electric power plants that will help improve grid reliability and lower electricity prices while continuing to support clean and safe water resources. If finalized, the EPA's proposal is estimated to reduce electricity generation costs by as much as $1.1 billion annually, which could provide cost-savings to American consumers.

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Industry News

Nukes Produce Power Cheaper than Coal, Study Shows

LCG, Jan. 9, 2001It has finally become less expensive to produce electricity in nuclear power plants than in coal-fired plants, or any others, according to the latest available full-year figures from the Utility Data Institute.

The Utility Data Institute is a division of McGraw-Hill. Its data are taken directly from Form 1 filings that utilities are required to make each year with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Price spikes that occurred in oil and natural gas in 1999 are not reflected in the figures compiled for last year.

In 1999, production costs, which consist of outlays for fuel and operations and maintenance, at nuclear power plants averaged 1.83 cents per kilowatt-hour, lower than coal at 2.07 cents and still far lower than oil-fired plants at 3.18 cents and natural gas plants at 3.52 cents, the Institute reports.

"At a time when the eyes of the nation are on energy prices, nuclear power's re-emergence as thelow production-cost leader is a reminder that the United States needs a diverse energy portfolio thatrelies in no small part on nuclear energy," said Marvin Fertel, a senior vice president of the Nuclear Energy Institute.

Fertel conceded that production costs do not represent the complete cost of electricity at nuclear power plants or any other power plant, but low production costs position nuclear facilities to thrive in a competitive electricity marketplace even after capital costs, property taxes and other expenses are added.

"Assuming electricity markets average between 2.5 and 3 cents per kilowatt-hour on a total costbasis, U.S. nuclear power plants already are very competitive," Fertel said. "They are operating atrecord levels of safety and reliability. They are stabilizing the electrical grid and helping to avertbrownouts and blackouts. And they are doing so economically and without emitting any pollutantsinto the atmosphere. Consumers, the environment and our nation's economy are all the better for it."

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