May 15 (Reuters) – NRG Energy said on Wednesday it
agreed to idle two coal-fired units in Pennsylvania about six
months ahead of schedule as part of a settlement to end a
lawsuit filed by New Jersey and Connecticut in 2007.
NRG will shut two units capable of producing 401 megawatts
at the Portland Generating Station in Mt. Bethel, Pennsylvania,
by June 1, 2014, after receiving regulatory approval, the
company said in a release.
The units were already scheduled to shut in January 2015 by
the previous owner, GenOn, which was acquired by NRG in late
2012, the company said.
The agreement, if approved by a federal court, will end a
lawsuit brought by New Jersey and Connecticut for alleged
noncompliance with the federal Clean Air Act at the Portland
plant before it was acquired by Princeton, New Jersey-based NRG.
The company denied any violations of the Clean Air Act.
“This is a tremendous win for cleaner air and better health
for the residents of New Jersey,” said Bob Martin, commissioner
of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
in a separate statement.
NRG also agreed to make a “significant investment” in
environmental projects, said Lee Davis, president of NRG’s East
Region.
NRG’s Portland station is a 570-MW plant, located 26 miles
northeast of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, on the Delaware River.
Other units at the station burn natural gas to generate power,
according to the company’s website.
The agreement will be submitted to the U.S. Department of
Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for review
and public comment. It also is subject to approval from the U.S.
District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
