Trump regime props up inefficient and environmentally costly “beautiful coal” power plants.
Because all that BS about free markets and energy independence is nothing but a subsidy to crony capitalism and corporate energy putting the lie to ‘public utility’.
Remember the national security rationalization applied to banning German luxury cars and … covering up Russian collusion
- “Federal action is necessary to stop the further premature retirements of fuel-secure generation capacity,” says a 41-page draft memo obtained by Bloomberg and circulated before a National Security Council meeting on the subject Friday.
- Memo outlines plan for DOE to direct operators to purchase electricity or generation capacity from facilities at risk of retirement. Government also would establish a "Strategic Electric Generation Reserve" w/ aim of promoting nat'l defense & maximizing domestic energy supplies.
- The Energy Department would be embracing authority under 2 laws - the Federal Power Act & the Cold War-era Defense Production Act - to intervene temporarily while the gov't conducts a 2-year study of vulnerabilities. Read more from @business:
- Administration officials are still deciding on what - if anything - to do. This memo represents the DOE's latest, most fully developed plan to intervene on behalf of coal & nuclear power plants, pitched to Trump's top national security advisers. Memo here:
"This attempt to turn an era of cheap, abundant electricity into an emergency should be seen for what it is—a scare tactic, pure and simple."
“The Energy Department has already tried to tip the scale in favor of uneconomic coal and nuclear power plants to provide a totally unnecessary ‘resilience’ benefit. That attempt was rightfully denied by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which determined that market rates and processes are indeed sufficient to meet national energy demand.
“The Trump administration is trying, once again, to fleece ratepayers by giving coal and nuclear power plants billions of dollars in guaranteed profits. It’s absurd to force consumers to bail out money-losing plants when grid operators are having no problem keeping the lights on.”