This comes a day after the trade association, which represents nearly 900 U.S. local electric cooperatives, filed a motion to stay the rule in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

As we’ve reported, coal and new gas plants would have to capture their emissions using carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) or retire by various compliance dates in the 2030s.

Jim Matheson, CEO of NRECA, said carbon capture technologies are promising but not ready for prime time, especially under the compliance deadlines EPA set in the final rule. This is one of the chief arguments from opponents of the rule.

“This is a flawed rule,” said Matheson. “We have multiple members across the country that face not only massive costs if they could implement this, but also requirements to use a technology that’s simply not ready,” he added, referring to CCS.

Plant owners are expected to file their implementation plans by May of 2026. Yet of the more than 75 coal-fired units owned or operated by members of NRECA, the association knows of only 3 units that could plausibly attempt to demonstrate CCS at any notable level by the 2030s compliance dates — yet even they would not come close to meeting the rule’s 90% capture rate, according to one exhibit in court filings.

Two of those units are at the coal-fired Milton R. Young Station near Center, North Dakota. Minnkota Power Cooperative and TC Energy are hosting a large-scale carbon capture demonstration project there, known as Project Tundra. NRECA noted in court filings that the project sits atop ideal geology for storage, has been in planning for nearly a decade, has used government funding for two-thirds of the costs so far, yet still would not meet the 90% capture rate.

“I have great confidence that we’re going to capture substantial amounts of CO2 from [Project Tundra],” said Mac McLennan, CEO of Minnkota Power Cooperative, which operates primarily in the states of North Dakota and Minnesota. “But for us to have a reference point called a 90% removal from EPA when it’s yet to be demonstrated or verified, it causes me pause.”

90% capture or otherwise, McLennan said the soonest Project Tundra could be commercially online would be 2028 and 2029, but other variable factors that could further delay the project include labor and supply chain constraints.

Matheson said matter-of-factly: “The short answer is there is not some silver bullet technology that is going to achieve the Biden administration’s stated goal of zero emissions from the electric sector by 2035.”

Opponents argue the EPA rule would be a death blow to the coal industry. Under the rule, coal plants which plan to stay open beyond 2039 would have to reduce or capture 90% of their CO2 emissions by 2032. Coal plants that are scheduled to close by 2039 would have to cut their emissions 16% by 2030, while those that are set to retire by 2032 would be exempted from the new rule.

Tony Campbell, President and CEO of East Kentucky Power Cooperative, said coal-fired power has proved necessary during extreme cold snaps. He said retiring coal units too early would jeopardize reliability.

He said natural gas is not the solution or “stepping stone” everyone thinks it is. He said the co-op couldn’t get natural gas during Winter Storm Elliott during frozen infrastructure. While a lot of those units are dual fuel, Campbell said onsite diesel reserves might last a few days, where coal plants would have 40 to 60 days of reserves.

We’re not misguided by a belief that we have to have coal forever,” he said, “But we do believe that coal right now is supporting the system.”

Campbell added the reliability challenge will be compounded by significant projected load growth in the U.S., largely driven by artificial intelligence.

“Our responsibility is to deliver reliable, affordable and safe power to the end consumer,” he said. “Electricity is no longer a luxury in our country, it’s a necessity.”

NRECA’s motion to stay the EPA rule comes nearly a week after the association filed a lawsuit challenging the rule. A coalition of 23 states also challenged the rule in court.

The rules targets coal-fired plants and new natural gas-fired plants, which would have to capture their emissions or retire by various compliance dates in the 2030s.

Both lawsuits were filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Major coal producing states are leading the multistate challenge, saying the EPA rules would be a death blow to the coal industry while jeopardizing grid reliability.

“This green new deal agenda the Biden administration continues to force onto the people is setting up the plants to fail and therefore shutter, altering the nation’s already stretched grid,” said West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey in a statement.

BREAKING: The WV AG is co-leading a multistate coalition challenging the EPA's recently-released new rule on existing coal-, natural gas- and oil-fired power plants.

READ ALL ABOUT IT: https://t.co/CQBhw1W2br pic.twitter.com/LQpEr7NXOI

— WV Attorney General (@WestVirginiaAG) May 9, 2024

“Make no mistake, this rule intentionally sets impossible standards to destroy the coal industry,” North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said. “Federal agencies cannot decide on a whim to destroy entire industries.”

EPA’s final rules heavily rely on on carbon capture and sequestration/storage (CCS) as the best system of emission reduction (BSER) for the longest-running existing coal-fired units and most heavily utilized new gas turbines.

Under the rules, coal plants which plan to stay open beyond 2039 would have to reduce or capture 90% of their carbon dioxide emissions by 2032. Coal plants that are scheduled to close by 2039 would have to cut their emissions 16% by 2030, while those that are set to retire by 2032 would be exempted from the new rule.

New natural gas-fired plants that run more than 40% of the time, considered “baseload” by the agency, would also have to eliminate 90% of their carbon dioxide emissions using CCS by 2032. 

Read our full recap of EPA’s rules here

“This rule strips the states of important discretion while using technologies that don’t work in the real world—this administration packaged this rule with several other rules aimed at destroying traditional energy providers,” Morrisey said. “We are confident we will once again prevail in court against this rogue agency.”

The other states joining West Virginia and North Dakota are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) also filed a lawsuit challenging the rules.

“EPA’s power plant rule is unlawful, unreasonable and unachievable. It exceeds EPA’s authority and poses an immediate threat to the American electric grid,” NRECA CEO Jim Matheson said. “Under the rule, EPA illegally attempts to transform the U.S. energy economy by forcing a shift in electricity generation to the agency’s favored sources.”

“Reliable electricity is the foundation of the American economy,” he added. “EPA’s rule recklessly undermines that foundation by forcing the premature closure of power plants that are critical to keeping the lights on – especially as America increasingly relies on electricity to power the economy.”