Overview
- Energy Secretary Chris Wright said emergency directives to keep aging coal plants online, relax certain pollution limits, and tap backup generators ensured sufficient capacity during Winter Storm Fern.
- DOE figures showed natural gas supplied 43% of peak power, coal 24%, nuclear 15%, and renewables 14%, and officials reported no forced outages due to lack of generation capacity.
- Clean‑energy advocates said wind, solar, and storage delivered significant support and savings in some regions, noting roughly 25% of Texas generation came from those resources during the storm.
- The owners of Colorado’s Craig Generating Station Unit 1 petitioned DOE to reverse its order extending operations, estimating at least $20 million in costs for 90 days and up to $150 million for a year.
- A Grid Strategies analysis estimated retaining coal plants could cost consumers at least $3 billion annually over the next three years, while the Edison Electric Institute warned that halting near‑complete offshore wind projects would also drive up rates.