Attorney General Phil Weiser challenges federal order keeping Craig coal-fired power unit open

Jan. 28, 2026 (DENVER) – There is no emergency justifying the U.S. Department of Energy’s order to keep the coal-fired Craig Unit 1 in Moffat County available until March 30, and the order should be rescinded because it is an unlawful abuse of the federal government’s emergency authority, according to a petition to be filed today by Attorney General Phil Weiser.

The Energy Department issued the order on December 30, 2025, using its emergency authority under a provision in the Federal Power Act, to prevent the scheduled retirement of Craig Unit 1. The order requires that the old coal-fired unit continue to be available for 90 days beyond its long-planned retirement date December 31, 2025.

The petition filed with the Energy Department explains that until recently, the department has used its authority only for real and imminent shortfalls in the total available power to meet demand due to unexpected outages, natural disasters and extreme weather, and only when the grid operators or governmental bodies have requested intervention.

Attorney General Weiser said that federal overreach into the state’s authority over power generation resources is permitted only in a true emergency and only with specific procedures that the department did not follow when it issued the order.

“There is no evidence of an energy emergency that would require keeping Craig Unit 1 open. The Energy Department’s illegal order will result in millions of dollars of unnecessary costs that could be passed on to rural households and businesses already struggling with high electricity bills. The continued operation of Craig Unit 1 would also increase pollution in Colorado, harming the environment and public health. This is a federal intrusion into the state’s authority to design and manage energy policy within our borders. The DOE should rescind the order,” said Attorney General Weiser.

The decision to retire Craig Unit 1 was made a decade ago, and the anticipated retirement of the unit and its replacement with more cost-effective resources was the result of a carefully planned process that was primarily driven by economic considerations. The unit’s retirement has been included in comprehensive resource adequacy planning processes completed by all the utility owners of Craig Unit 1 throughout the last decade.

Even if there was an emergency, the petition notes that stopping the Craig unit’s retirement would not ease any perceived energy need. Not only was the facility not operational at the time the Energy Department issued the order, but there are more reliable and affordable options to meet any such need. The department’s mandated continued availability of Craig Unit 1 does not “best meet” any emergency or “serve the public interest” as required by federal law.

The state is asking the department to rescind its order and to refrain from renewing it past the March 30, 2026 date. The Energy Department has 30 days to respond to the state’s petition for rehearing.

Read the full petition here (PDF).

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Media Contact:
Lawrence Pacheco
Chief Communications Officer
(720) 508-6553 office
lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov