US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has issued an emergency order to keep the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Michigan, operational through the winter to address critical grid reliability concerns in the Midwest. Originally scheduled to shut down in May 2025, the plant has proven vital during periods of high energy demand and low renewable output. The order, effective November 19, 2025, through February 17, 2026, directs the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) and Consumers Energy to ensure the plant’s availability while minimizing costs. DOE warnings highlight that retiring reliable power prematurely could dramatically increase future outages, and MISO has identified year-round resource adequacy risks, particularly in northern and central zones, due to insufficient new capacity and retirements of existing power sources. The DOE writes:
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright issued an emergency order to address critical grid reliability issues facing the Midwestern region of the United States heading into the cold winter months. The emergency order directs the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), in coordination with Consumers Energy, to ensure that the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Michigan remains available for operation and to take every step to minimize costs for the American people. The Campbell Plant was scheduled to shut down on May 31, 2025 — 15 years before the end of its scheduled design life.
“Because of the last administration’s dangerous energy subtraction policies targeting reliable and affordable energy sources, the United States continues to face an energy emergency,” said Energy Secretary Wright. “The Trump administration will keep taking action to reverse these energy subtraction policies, lowering energy costs and minimizing the risks of blackouts. Americans deserve access to affordable, reliable and secure energy regardless of whether the wind is blowing or the sun is shining, especially in dangerously cold weather.”
Since the Department of Energy’s (DOE) original order issued on May 23, the Campbell plant has proven critical to MISO’s operations, operating regularly during periods of high energy demand and low levels of intermittent energy production. A subsequent order was issued on August 20, 2025.
As outlined in DOE’s Resource Adequacy Report, power outages could increase by 100 times in 2030 if the U.S. continues to take reliable power offline. The emergency conditions that led to the issuance of the original orders persist.
MISO’s service area will continue to face emergency conditions both in the near and long term. Two recent winter studies (2024 – 2025 NERC Winter Reliability Assessment and the 2023 – 2024 NERC Winter Reliability Assessment) have assessed the MISO assessment area as an elevated risk, with the “potential for insufficient operating reserves in above-normal conditions.”This order is in effect beginning on November 19, 2025, and continuing until February 17, 2026.
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