“On behalf of Xcel’s South Dakota customers who very much would like their electricity to remain reliable 24/7/365 in good weather or bad, we ask you to reconsider your unfortunate decision to close King and Sherco prematurely. We do not want Xcel to be part of the impending problem of generation shortage in the MISO footprint. Reliability should be your number one commitment.”
What Others Are Saying
Below is a collection of quotes from industry experts, policymakers, officials, and others on various electrical grid issues. Use the filters below to find perspectives on topics like coal retirements, reliability, regulations and more.
Quote Filter
- South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
- South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
- South Dakota Public Utilities Commission
- Letter to Xcel Energy on the Planned Closure of Minnesota Coal Plants
- 01/04/2024
“We urge the EPA to rescind its Clean Power Plan 2.0 proposal and make affordability, reliability, and the limits of its authorities under the Clean Air Act cornerstones of any future proposal. The more time that has passed since the proposal, the more issues with the Clean Power Plan 2.0 have been uncovered. The proposal is beyond repair and must be withdrawn. Failing to do so and moving ahead with the proposal would significantly threaten the safety and reliability of the electric grid. The impact of these flaws will ultimately be borne by ratepayers through higher energy costs and the effects of reduced reliability on economic opportunity and public health and safety. Low-income and other vulnerable Americans will be disproportionately affected due to the regressive nature of energy cost increases.”
- Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY)
- Ranking Member
- Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan
- 12/19/2023
“We urge the EPA to rescind its Clean Power Plan 2.0 proposal and make affordability, reliability, and the limits of its authorities under the Clean Air Act cornerstones of any future proposal. The more time that has passed since the proposal, the more issues with the Clean Power Plan 2.0 have been uncovered. The proposal is beyond repair and must be withdrawn. Failing to do so and moving ahead with the proposal would significantly threaten the safety and reliability of the electric grid. The impact of these flaws will ultimately be borne by ratepayers through higher energy costs and the effects of reduced reliability on economic opportunity and public health and safety. Low-income and other vulnerable Americans will be disproportionately affected due to the regressive nature of energy cost increases.”
- Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)
- Ranking Member
- Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
- Letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan
- 12/19/2023
“And by the way, that is before the EPA came out with the power plant rule, which is going to make that number even worse, as every RTO knows. The numbers don’t add up. You lose 8 gigs of dispatchable, and you pick up 24 gigs of wind and solar, [you think] you’re fine right now. You’re not fine, because as we all know, a megawatt of nameplate wind and solar is not equal to a megawatt of nameplate coal or gas. It’s just reality.”
- Mark Christie
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- "Nation’s Grid Faces ‘Rendezvous with Reality", RTO Insider
- 09/11/2023
“The first rule of holes is if you’re in one, stop digging. “If the fundamental problem we’re facing is we’re shutting down dispatchable resources far too prematurely, then the answer is to stop shutting down dispatchable resources far too prematurely.”
- Mark Christie
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- "Rendezvous with Reality", RTO Insider
- 09/11/2023
“Commissioner Christie said the red lights are flashing, problems are coming. The problem generally is not the addition of intermittent resources primarily wind and solar but the far too rapid subtraction of dispatchable resources especially coal and gas.”
- Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY)
- Ranking Member
- Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- 05/04/2023
“PJM has recently said that we are facing imminent resource scarcity and yet in the last procurement auction the capacity prices dropped. During times of scarcity, if a market functions correctly, obviously the prices should go up. This is proof that the subsidies are working ill on the markets right now.”
- James Danly
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- House Energy and Commerce Committee
- 06/13/2023
“You can’t just shut down your dispatchable generation overnight or within the matter of a few years and think that you can keep the lights on by simply trying to replace. My point of the megawatt versus a megawatt is the capacity value of the wind or solar megawatt is simply not equal to the capacity value of a megawatt. You can’t just keep the grid running with a 1-1 replacement – the numbers don’t add up.”
- Mark Christie
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- House Energy and Commerce Committee, Energy Subcommittee
- 06/13/2023
“It would be wonderful if carbon capture technology could be mature to where you could run coal or gas generating units with carbon capture and actually remove all the carbon and have that benefit. I don’t think the technology is anywhere near being mature yet, but time will tell.”
- Mark Christie
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- House Energy and Commerce Committee, Energy Subcommittee
- 06/13/2023
“… there’s an accusation there’s fear mongering going on with those of us expressing concerns about loss of dispatchable resources. I don’t think the head of NERC is fearmongering when he repeatedly says that this is a coming danger. I don’t think the head of PJM is fearmongering when he has said, we’re losing dispatchable resources at a rate we cannot sustain.” I don’t think the head of MISO is fearmongering when he says we’re losing dispatchable resources at a rate we can’t sustain.” I don’t think it’s fearmongering when the head of New York ISO last week said the same thing. I think we need to listen to the engineers, not the lobbyists. And I think we need to be doing what’s right for rate payers and not political narratives.”
- Mark Christie
- Commissioner
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- House Energy and Commerce Committee, Energy Subcommittee
- 06/13/2023
“By imposing unworkable deadlines and unproven technologies not commercially available, this latest version of Democrats’ so-called Clean Power Plan poses an existential threat to providers of affordable and reliable American energy.”
- Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Minority Leader
- U.S. Senate
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“Mandating more electrification while making it harder to produce electricity is a recipe for disaster. The Biden EPA’s new proposed rules for power plants will put Americans at risk of blackouts, energy shortages, and higher prices by shutting down reliable energy sources.”
- Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC-3)
- Chair
- House Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“The EPA’s new proposed rules would kill jobs in Wyoming and raise energy costs for families across the country. We can protect the environment and unleash clean, affordable, and reliable American energy at the same time.”
- Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY)
- Ranking Member
- Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“Today’s proposal further risks the security and reliability of our country’s electric grid, which could lead to energy shortages and rolling blackouts like those experienced across several states this past winter.”
- Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA-9)
- Chair
- House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“With these new proposed rules, the Biden administration continues to wage war not only against U.S. energy companies but also against all the everyday Americans who rely on energy simply to maintain their homes and take care of their families.”
- Todd Rokita
- Attorney General
- Indiana
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“Based upon what we currently know about this proposal, it is not going to be upheld, and it just seems designed to scare more coal-fired power plants into retirement—the goal of the Biden administration.”
- Patrick Morrisey
- Attorney General
- West Virginia
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“Forcing power plants to close or adopt costly modifications will further harm electricity reliability and raise energy bills for Americans. If the president doesn’t start encouraging conventional energy alongside renewable development, consumers are going to pay a heavy price.”
- Sen. John Thune (R-SD)
- Minority Whip
- U.S. Senate
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“At a time when millions are struggling to fill up their tanks and pay their utility bills, it’s reprehensible that the Biden administration would clamp down even further on domestic energy production, attempt to close down power plants, and kill American energy jobs.”
- Sen. Shelley Capito (R-WV)
- Senator
- U.S. Senate
- Response to EPA’s Proposed Carbon Rule
- 05/11/2023
“… the reality is that our dispatchable coal power was one of the most reliable energy sources during the Winter Storms Uri and Elliott. Coal power plants saw significantly fewer outages than natural gas plants. The grid would have been absolutely decimated during these storms if our coal fleet was retired prematurely.”
- Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)
- Chairman
- Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- FERC Oversight Hearing
- 05/04/2023
“It makes no sense at all to take tools out of the toolbox. No energy resource is immune to weather disruptions whether that be frozen wind turbines, frozen gas wells, or frozen coal stockpiles, all of which we saw in recent winters.” […] “There is no doubt that our electric grid is undergoing a rapid transition both in generation sources and in the types of demand the grid is called on to serve. The speed of this transition must be balanced against reliability and affordability of electricity.”
- Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)
- Chairman
- Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- FERC Oversight Hearing
- 05/04/2023