The operator of a power grid in the mid-Atlantic is warning that the planned shutdown of a coal-fired power plant could disrupt and short-change electrical supply before people can replace it.
PJM Interconnection, the company that manages wholesale electricity in parts or the entirety of 13 states and provides electricity for more than 65 million Americans, said that they expect the shutdown of the Brandon Shores coal power plant outside of Baltimore to disrupt the power there and leave it wanting. The plant’s owner, Talen Energy, made a deal with the environmentalist group Sierra Club to deactivate it by 2025 in order to diminish carbon dioxide outputs. That deal may not be good for residents, however.
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“The PJM region and the state of Maryland are facing future reliability challenges as a result of the announced retirement of the Brandon Shores units,” Jeff Shields, a spokesperson for PJM Interconnection, told Fox News Digital. “Specifically, PJM analyses showed that the deactivation of the Brandon Shores units would cause severe voltage drop and thermal violations across seven PJM zones, which could lead to a widespread reliability risk in Baltimore and the immediate surrounding areas.”
PJM predicts that prematurely shutting down Brandon Shores could create an imbalance in the local power grid. The plant generates about 1,295 megawatts, which is enough to power more than a million homes. Grids can sometimes transfer power from other areas, but the upgrades required to do so will not be finished until 2028 — three years after Brandon Shores is scheduled to shut down.
The company has demanded that Brandon Shores remain in operation until those upgrades are finished but notes that the Talen agreement with Sierra Club bars this from being the case.
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Local regulators are working on accounting for these problems. “We are always mindful of regional electric system reliability and how it relates to electricity consumers in Maryland,” Maryland Public Service Commission spokeswoman Tori Leonard told Fox News.
