Just days ago FirstEnergy Solutions filed bankruptcy in hopes of restructuring more than $1 billion of debt, and now that move has others in the energy sector concerned for the future.
Murray Energy said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission could have prevented this if they would have enacted the Grid Resiliency Pricing Rule in September of last year.
In a statement from Murray Energy, Senior Corporate Counsel and Director of Investor and Media Relations, Gary Broadbent said,
“Murray Energy Corporation expresses our sincere sympathies to the management and employees of FirstEnergy Solutions Corp. (“FES”), during this very difficult time. Indeed, what makes this matter even more hurtful is that this bankruptcy could have been avoided, had the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) done its job and enacted the Department of Energy’s September 29, 2017 Grid Resiliency Pricing Rule, which sought to ensure the reliability, resiliency, and security of the electric power grids in our Country. As a result of FERC’s failure, critical power plants will close, thousands of American jobs will be lost, and the reliability, resiliency, and security of our electric power grids will be forever compromised. Additionally, the cost of electricity will skyrocket, which is particularly harmful for our citizens on fixed incomes, single income families, and manufacturers of products for the global marketplace. Unfortunately, we fear that this destructive FERC decision will cause further decommissioning of nuclear and coal-fired generation, which will further exacerbate this critical situation.”
