< The owners want to close this Colorado coal plant. The Trump administration says no

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

The Trump administration is taking unprecedented steps to support the coal industry. That includes emergency orders to keep coal plants running across the country, even when utilities want to shut them down. Sam Brasch of Colorado Public Radio reports.

SAM BRASCH, BYLINE: Craig Station towers over the high deserts of northwest Colorado. On tours, Tim Osborn, the former plant manager, liked to show off the view from the roof.

TIM OSBORN: We bring the coal in from Trapper Mine. You can see the train right over there. Fifty-five cars, seven days a week.

BRASCH: That's thousands of tons of coal burnt daily. Homes from New Mexico to Nebraska rely on electricity from three power plants at the complex. On this visit several years ago, Osborn pointed out the oldest, Craig Unit 1, first built in 1980.

OSBORN: That's the first plant to close.

BRASCH: At least, it was scheduled to close at the end of last year. The utilities behind it have long planned to shift to wind, solar and natural gas. Besides saving money, the transition aligned with Colorado's climate goals. But that plan is on hold. In December, a day before Craig 1 was set to shut down, the U.S. Department of Energy ordered the plant to stay online. The Trump administration has taken similar actions to keep four other coal plants open across the country, part of a broader effort to revive the coal industry.

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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Clean, beautiful coal. Clean, beautiful coal.

BRASCH: At a recent White House event, President Trump said coal is critical to cheap and reliable electricity.

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TRUMP: It's going to be less expensive and actually much more effective than what we have been using for many, many years.

BRASCH: But the utilities behind Craig 1 say that's not true. In late January, Tri-State Generation and Transmission and the Platte River Power Authority asked the government to let them close the plant. Both power providers declined to be interviewed. But in filings, they said Craig 1 is no longer necessary, and keeping it open will raise bills. Ari Peskoe is an electricity law expert at Harvard Law School.

ARI PESKOE: Their claim is that they had planned to retire this plant, and they had been making preparations to retire the plant for some time.

BRASCH: By shifting gears, the utilities say they're already spending money to fix the plant and buy coal.

PESKOE: And all of that is effectively commandeering the property - private property of these entities.

BRASCH: The plant owners say the federal government is violating their constitutional property rights. Plus, Peskoe says the administration is leaning on a law traditionally used during extreme weather events, like hurricanes or cold snaps.

PESKOE: Real emergencies that require short-term and immediate responses.

BRASCH: The U.S. Department of Energy didn't agree to an interview request, but in a statement, a spokesperson said the grid is facing a crisis. That's because they say letting coal plants close could destabilize the electricity supply. But the operators of Craig 1 insist there is no crisis because they've already built renewables to replace the facility, and customers are already paying for those resources, says Matt Gerhart, a senior attorney with the Sierra Club.

MATT GERHART: And now they're going to be asked to pay for the cost to keep Craig 1 online, even though it's no longer needed. So customers will essentially be paying twice.

BRASCH: That's why Gerhart hopes the Trump administration reconsiders its order. Otherwise, the dispute will likely end up in federal court.

For NPR News, I'm Sam Brasch in Denver.

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