Exelon made no secret last week that its Oyster Creek, Bryon and Quad Cities nuclear plants failed to clear the base residual auction.

Other generators — representing almost two-thirds of the 11,500 MW of generation capacity that failed to clear — were less forthcoming.

UBS Securities analysts believe that at least some of the units at two NRG coal-fired plants in Maryland, Chalk Point and Dickerson, also failed to clear. UBS said it believes some of the 750 MW of uncleared capacity in the ComEd Zone may have been part of NRG’s Midwest Generation fleet.

An NRG spokesman, citing competitive reasons, declined to comment on the auction results.

A proposed 859-MW combined-cycle plant planned by Panda Power in Brandywine, Md., also may have failed to clear, according to UBS, which cited “air permit issues.” A Panda Power spokesman Friday declined to comment on the auction results but said the planned plant is still going forward.

Last year, FirstEnergy announced it would deactivate Hatfield’s Ferry and Mitchell plants in southwestern Pennsylvania after both plants failed to clear the auction. While a company spokesman wouldn’t say whether it bid those plants in this year’s auction, he said the decision to retire those plants stands.

New Generation

PJM said it cleared 5,927 MW of new generation, the most ever. About 4,800 MW is combined-cycle generation clearing for the first time, all of it east of the west-to-east transmission constraints or in zones short of capacity.

Among this new combined-cycle generation is believed to be an 800-MW plant planned in the ATSI zone in Oregon, Ohio. The plant is being developed by North America Project Development LLC with funding from Energy Investors Funds, a private equity firm.

UBS said it believes Old Dominion Electric Cooperative’s 800-MW Wildcat expansion and PSEG’s Linden advanced gas path (AGP) uprate also cleared.

Reactivations

In addition, PJM cleared about 1,100 MW of generation that was slated for retirement but will be reactivated after switching from coal to another fuel.

NRG spokesman David Gaier said the company has several repowering projects underway or in the planning stages.

The company’s 732-MW Avon Lake, Ohio, plant and 325-MW New Castle plant in West Pittsburg, Pa., are in the process of being switched from coal to natural gas.

Its 158-MW, coal-fired Portland, Pa., plant ceased operations last week, but the company announced it will switch that unit to low-sulfur diesel, a project expected to be completed in June 2016.

Gaier said NRG is also considering converting its 597-MW Shawville, Pa., coal-fired plant to natural gas.

FirstEnergy spokesperson Stephanie Walton said the company doesn’t have any current plans to repower any of its coal-fired plants.