By Suzanne Herel and Amanda Durish Cook

The Illinois General Assembly adjourned Tuesday without acting on a bill that Exelon says it needs to save the Clinton and Quad Cities nuclear plants.

“At this time, the future of the Next Generation Energy Plan remains unclear,” Exelon said. “We’ll have more to say about the path forward within the next few days.”

Lawmakers also failed to act on a proposal by Dynegy to transition all of Illinois generation into the deregulated PJM market. (See Dynegy Introduces Bill to Move all of Ill. into PJM.)

“We knew it would be a challenge when the legislature is working through competing budget shortfall issues. We will continue to work with the legislature and other interested parties throughout the summer to implement a comprehensive energy solution for Illinois,” said David Onufer, external communications manager at Dynegy.

The Houston-based company wants to move the Commonwealth Edison and Ameren service areas in Central and Southern Illinois from MISO Zone 4 into PJM, saying the retail-choice state is a mismatch in MISO’s markets.

Exelon’s Deadline

CEO Christopher Crane had given legislators a May 31 deadline to help shore up the money-losing nuclear plants if Quad Cities did not clear the PJM Base Residual Auction for delivery year 2019/20. It failed to do so. (See Absent Legislation, Exelon to Close Clinton, Quad Cities Nukes.)

While the 1,065-MW Clinton plant won contracts in the MISO auction, its clearing price was insufficient to cover operating costs, Crane said.

If Exelon sticks to its word, it will close Clinton next June and the 1,819-MW Quad Cities plant the following year.

Together, the facilities have lost $800 million from 2009 to 2015, Crane said. According to Exelon, their closures would represent a $1.2 billion loss in economic activity and 4,200 direct and indirect jobs. The plants employ 1,500.

Revised Plan

The Next Generation Energy Plan incorporates pieces of similar legislation introduced last year by Exelon along with the competing Clean Jobs Bill. The latter proposal aimed to reduce energy demand by 20% through energy efficiency; increase the renewable portfolio standard from 25% by 2025 to 35% by 2030; and create an estimated 32,000 jobs annually by creating a market mechanism to reduce carbon emissions.

A key new element of the plan is a shift to a zero-based emission standard, which would provide financial support for struggling nuclear plants in recognition of their lack of carbon emissions.

The company said the standard would address stakeholder concerns by requiring state regulators to review plants’ costs to ensure that only those whose revenues are insufficient to cover their costs and “operating risk” will receive compensation.

On Friday, the bill received the endorsement of Ameren Illinois, but on the condition of an amendment changing energy efficiency targets that could make it unpalatable to environmentalists.

In introducing the energy plan, Exelon said it was an outgrowth of discussions among it, ComEd and members of the Clean Jobs Coalition, a group representing Illinois’ environmental, business and faith communities.

The coalition supports the ComEd bill’s expansion of energy efficiency programs, which it says would save customers at least $4 billion over a decade. But it says the Ameren amendment would exclude that utility’s customers from the expansion.

“While ComEd has offered a strong energy efficiency plan, the Ameren proposal … is a half-measure that will leave downstate customers with fewer jobs and higher bills than people in Chicago and Northern Illinois. Ameren is really leaving Central and Southern Illinois in the dark,” the coalition said in a statement.