Washington state and a coalition of environmental and public interest organizations have filed legal challenges seeking to overturn a federal order that requires the state’s last coal-fired power plant to remain available for operation beyond its planned shutdown.

The lawsuits target a December emergency directive issued by the U.S. Department of Energy requiring the Centralia coal plant, operated by TransAlta in central Washington, to stay available for generation despite long-standing plans to retire the facility.

The order was issued shortly before the plant’s final coal unit was scheduled to close at the end of twenty twenty five, following years of planning to phase out coal power in the state.

The federal directive relies on emergency authority under Section two zero two of the Federal Power Act, which allows the government to instruct power plants to operate during urgent threats to electricity reliability.

Federal officials have argued that maintaining the facility temporarily available supports dependable power supplies in the Pacific Northwest, particularly during periods of heightened demand or weather-driven stress on the grid.

Washington state officials and environmental advocates argue the measure exceeds those emergency powers.

The state filed its own petition with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals while environmental and public interest groups submitted a separate challenge in the same court after the Energy Department rejected requests for reconsideration of the order.

The legal filings focus on the Centralia generating station, a coal plant that has operated for decades and was scheduled to end coal operations under a long-standing agreement reached in twenty eleven between the state, the plant’s owner and climate policy advocates.

Washington’s Clean Energy Transformation Act also requires utilities in the state to stop delivering coal-generated electricity to customers after the end of twenty twenty five.

Federal officials have defended the directive as part of a broader effort to ensure the reliability of the American power system during a period of increasing strain on electricity grids.

Supporters of the policy say maintaining flexible sources of generation, including coal plants nearing retirement, can provide valuable backup capacity during extreme conditions.

The order instructs TransAlta to ensure that one remaining coal-burning unit at the Centralia facility remains available for operation through mid-March twenty twenty six.

However, the plant had already ceased routine coal generation shortly after the order was issued and has not resumed full operations while legal disputes continue.

The dispute underscores a wider national debate over how quickly older fossil fuel plants should be retired while maintaining grid stability and affordable energy supplies.

Similar federal directives affecting coal plants in other states have also prompted legal challenges from state governments and environmental organizations.

As the litigation proceeds in federal court, the outcome could shape the balance between federal emergency authority over the electricity system and state-led transitions toward alternative energy sources.