U.S. Department of Energy orders Eddystone plant to stay on line fourth time
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright issued an emergency order directing grid operator PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM), and Constellation Energy Corporation, owner of the Eddystone Generating Station, to ensure Units 3 and 4 of the plant remain in operation through May 24. The units were originally slated to shut down on May 31, 2025.
The DOE says the natural gas-powered plant’s continued operation is necessary to address to address critical grid reliability issues facing the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Constellation planned to close the aging, money-losing units more than a year ago. The order said Constellation should “employ economic dispatch to minimize costs for the American people.”
“The energy sources that perform when you need them most are inherently the most valuable—that’s why natural gas and oil were valuable during recent winter storms,” Secretary Wright said. “Hundreds of American lives have likely been saved because of President Trump’s actions keeping critical generation online, including this Pennsylvania generating station which ran during Winter Storm Fern. This emergency order will mitigate the risk of blackouts and maintain affordable, reliable, and secure electricity access across the region.”
The Eddystone Units were integral in stabilizing the grid during Winter Storm Fern. Between January 26-29, the units ran for over 124 hours cumulatively, providing critical generation in the midst of the energy emergency.
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. Furthermore, NERC’s 2025 Long-Term Reliability Assessment
warns, “The continuing shift in the resource mix toward weather-dependent resources and less fuel diversity increases risks of supply shortfalls during winter months.”
Secretary Wright ordered that the two Eddystone Generating Station units remain online past their planned retirement date in a May 30, 2025 emergency order. Subsequent orders were issued on August 28,
2025 and November 26, 2025. Keeping these units operational over the past year strengthened energy security in the PJM region, as demonstrated when PJM called on the units to generate electricity during heat waves that hit the region in the summer and during Winter Storm Fern. The emergency conditions that led to the issuance of the original orders persist.
This order is in effect beginning on February 24, 2026, through May 24, 2026.
PHOTO: Courtesy Constellation Energy Corp.
