Sierra Club Secures End to West Virginia PSC’s Costly 69% Coal Plant Capacity Directives

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Today, Sierra Club and West Virginia residents Bruce Perrone and Rosanna Long have successfully negotiated a legal settlement ending a series of costly coal directives issued by the Public Service Commission of West Virginia (PSC). Under the proposed settlement, which awaits Court approval, the PSC has disavowed its 2021 directives that Appalachian Power Company (APCo) and Wheeling Power Company (WPCo) coal plants operate at 69 percent capacity –  a rate far beyond the average for the region’s coal plants – when doing so is uneconomic. This was precisely the relief sought by plaintiffs in this lawsuit.  

Read the Proposed Settlement in Perrone v. Lane Here.

Prior to the PSC directives, APCo and WPCo’s seven-year average coal plant capacity factor – the ratio of energy produced at a coal plant compared to the maximum possible energy the plant could produce if operating at full capacity during the same time period – was 55 percent or below, meaning the PSC 2021 directive demanded a pricey 14 percent capacity increase.

Sierra Club argued that the PSC mandates forced utilities to keep high-cost coal plants running longer, interfering with FERC’s jurisdiction and ultimately raising electricity rates. At the time the lawsuit was filed in 2024, rates had already increased up to 20 percent, resulting in significantly higher electricity bills for the state’s residents and businesses.

“We West Virginians can breathe a sigh of relief today, knowing we’ll no longer foot the bill for the PSC’s misguided and harmful coal mandates,” said Bruce Perrone, a Kanawha County resident served by APCo and co-plaintiff in this lawsuit. ““The PSC was pushing the utilities to burn coal even when they’d lose money doing it, and have ratepayers cover the loss. With this case the PSC agrees that it won’t require the utilities to lose money burning coal.  Nearly thirty percent of our neighbors across the state say they’ve had to forgo essential expenses for a month or more in order to pay their energy bills. It doesn’t need to be this way. The PSC must do all it can to protect local families and businesses from unreasonable rate hikes that subsidize uneconomic coal plants.”

Today’s settlement arrives at a moment when state leaders are further trying to tie West Virginia to economically burdensome coal power. In February, West Virginia legislators introduced Senate Bill 505, an attempt to promote continued coal production, curb the clean energy transition, and place false blame on renewables for recent rate hikes.  

“This settlement successfully prevents the PSC from interfering with electricity markets on coal’s behalf and protects local residents from covering the cost,” said Jim Kotcon, Chair of the West Virginia Chapter of Sierra Club. “Still, West Virginia decision makers continue to double down on coal. Countless first-hand accounts from local residents facing high energy bills and worsened health from poor air quality and fact-based studies have proven the human and economic cost of coal. We will continue to fight for more affordable, clean energy sources that actually lower energy costs and an end to the irresponsible subsidization of coal plants.”

Under a recent proposal, APCo is seeking an overall bill increase of up to $23.74 per month, or approximately 13.5 percent, for residential customers using 1,000 kWh per month. West Virginia has the third oldest population in the U.S. and the second lowest median income. Nearly 30 percent of households in West Virginia live under energy burden.