U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued an emergency order on September 11, 2026, directing TransAlta Centralia Generation, LLC to keep Unit 2 of the Centralia Generating Station in Centralia, Washington, available to operate. The coal-fired unit had been scheduled to shut down at the end of 2025. Under the order, Centralia Unit 2 must remain available from September 13 through December 11, 2026.
Reliability in the Northwest
The Department of Energy said keeping the plant available addresses reliability risks in the Western Electricity Coordinating Council's Northwest region, known as WECC-Northwest, the grid area covering the Pacific Northwest. The department said those risks rise during extreme weather and that Centralia's availability lowers the risk of power outages that could threaten public health and safety.
Wright's reasoning
Wright said the order would help ensure reliable generation stays available "to help address periods of peak demand." "America needs more reliable power, not less," he said. He said the administration is replacing what he called the prior administration's "misguided energy subtraction policies" with a policy of "energy addition," aimed at expanding Americans' access to "affordable, reliable, and secure electricity." Wright said similar orders keeping reliable power plants online have "prevented blackouts and likely saved lives."
The department said more than 17 gigawatts of coal-fired generation were saved from retirement in 2025 through similar orders, part of what Wright described as the administration's energy policy of "energy addition." The department also pointed to its own Resource Adequacy Report, which found that premature retirements of reliable generation increase the risk of power outages.
