Grid Resiliency Rule: The other shoe for US Coal

At the end of August, the US President declined to use emergency powers to set a moratorium on coal plant retirements much to the chagrin of some in the coal industry. Some, in the industry, suggested that the President had broken a promise to "get this done" as part of the Administration's campaign to end the 'war on coal'. Now, the other shoe has dropped. On 28 September 2017 the US Secretary of Energy has proposed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission consider a rule that subsidizes generating resources that provide grid reliability and resiliency. The specific request that eligible units have 90 days of on-site fuel storage favors coal and nuclear plants. The impact of of such a rule, if enacted, may be surprisingly limited.