Overview
- A three‑judge D.C. Circuit panel on Sept. 11 vacated the Department of Energy’s emergency order that kept the 1.5 GW J.H. Campbell coal plant operating past its planned May 2025 retirement.
- The court said Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act is a narrow, last‑resort tool that requires a concrete, imminent shortage and cannot be used to undo state and regional retirement plans.
- Keeping Campbell open has cost hundreds of millions of dollars, with filings and reporting citing roughly $248–$259 million in added operating expenses through mid‑2026 that Consumers Energy and ratepayers may seek to recover.
- The ruling creates a legal precedent that undercuts similar DOE orders for other aging fossil‑fuel plants and could affect pending challenges, appeals, and FERC and state proceedings over who pays the bills.
- Watch for immediate next steps: DOE could seek rehearing or appeal, the department already issued another order to a Washington plant hours after the ruling, and courts will likely cite this opinion in related cases.