(Reuters) - Trump administration officials are considering requiring grid operators to buy electricity from ailing nuclear and coal-fired power plants to keep them from being shuttered, according to a draft memo reviewed by Reuters.
If adopted, the move would mark an unprecedented intervention in power markets, and would serve the administration's goal of bolstering America's struggling coal and nuclear industries that have been shrinking amid competition from natural gas, solar and wind power.
Under the plan, the U.S. Department of Energy would exercise emergency authority under a pair of federal laws to direct the operators to buy from coal and nuclear facilities, and could also create a so-called "Strategic Electric Generation Reserve," according to the memo.
"Federal action is necessary to stop the further premature retirements of fuel-secure generation capacity," the 41-page draft memo, dated May 29, said.
Department of Energy spokeswoman Shaylyn Hynes did not respond to requests for comment.
Bloomberg News first reported on the memo late on Thursday.
The idea comes after federal energy regulators rejected a proposal late last year from Energy Secretary Rick Perry to subsidize nuclear and coal plants for providing 'resilience' to the grid.
The administration said it was concerned the retirement of old coal and nuclear plants could put U.S. power supplies at risk because - unlike solar, wind, and natural gas power facilities - coal and nuclear generators can store fuel on site.
The drilling industry, renewable energy companies, and many grid operators reject the idea that coal and nuclear power plant closures are undermining U.S. electricity reliability and resiliency, saying gas, solar and wind have proven dependable.
"Litigation would begin almost immediately as any natural gas fired generators, renewable generators, and PJM itself would oppose the action," said Katie Bays, energy analyst at Height Capital Markets in Washington. PJM is an eastern United States grid operator that would be affected.
Mary Anne Hitt, Director of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign, called the proposal "an outrageous ploy to force American taxpayers to bail out coal and nuclear executives who have made bad decisions by investing in dirty and dangerous energy resources."