Head of Energy and Environmental Affairs Calls For Salem Plant Closure

Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles has joined the voices across the North Shore in support of closing the Salem Power Plant.

The Conservation Law Foundation, the organization which has filed complaints against Dominion and ISO-New England, first reported Bowles wrote a letter to the President and CEO of ISO- New England urging him to close the plant.

"This seems to me the beginning of the end of coal-fired electric power generation in Salem," Bowles said Friday in a statement. "Governor Patrick and I have worked closely with Dominion Power and with Mayor Driscoll, providing a grant to help city leaders understand options for repowering the facility or reusing the site. The time is ripe for older, inefficient, high-emission power plants to prepare for an orderly transition to a cleaner energy future."

Spokesperson for Bowles Lisa Capone, said this does not mean the Patrick administration is "calling for the closure" rather, they see recent movements as the beginning of the end.

Calls to Gov. Deval Patrick's officer were not immediately returned.

 ISO-New England, which regulates the plants and the energy market, will make the and will make that answer public 30 days after the auction.

In the two-page letter dated Dec. 8, Bowles, asked ISO-New England to "quickly implement" a solution to allow Salem Harbor Station to retire.

"The likelihood of Salem Harbor's retiring has been growing for a number of years," Bowles wrote. "ISO-New England previously rejeted static delist bids submitted by Dominion for two of Salem Harbor's four generators (Units 3 and 4) in both Forward Capacity Auctions. In both instances, I understand that ISO-New England rejected the delist bid and retained these units to maintain system reliability."

Bowles goes on to urge ISO-New England to allow the plant to close.

"I am concerned that if Salem Harbor is not allowed to retire, Dominion Energy will be forced to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on environmental upgrades to extend the life of an outmoded plant."

According to the Conservation Law Foundation, clean energy policy has been one of the centerpieces of the Patrick Administration, and this letter signals not only the Administration's commitment to building clean, new energy infrastructure, but also the important role they have in hastening the retirement of the coal-fired power plants that cause significant damage to public health and the environment.

ISO-NE will host meetings on December 15 and December 16 to discuss the planning process for replacing Salem Harbor Station.