Coal plant forced to stay open due to emergency order isn't even running

The Trump administration used emergency orders under the Federal Power Act to prevent coal plants from closing, claiming grid reliability concerns. The TransAlta Centralia Coal Plant in Washington was ordered to stay open through mid-June, but EIA data shows it generated only 8 MWh in January and February—essentially not running at all. The Environmental Defense Fund highlighted this as evidence the plant is merely maintaining standby capacity rather than contributing meaningful power.