As it proceeds toward a clean-energy future, Idaho Power plans to exit a nearly 50-year-old Wyoming coal plant sooner rather than later, in part by converting parts of the coal plant to natural gas.
On June 1, the Idaho Public Utilities Commission approved the next steps in a planned exit from the Jim Bridger Power Plant, near Rock Springs, Wyoming. Idaho Power is a part-owner of the plant, which opened in 1974 and which is assumed to reach the end of its useful life in 2034, according to the company.
But Idaho Power hopes to exit its share early, as a 2021 analysis by the company indicated that leaving coal behind sooner would be more economical.
