Regulators green-light power line upgrades needed to close last Maryland coal plant

Maryland regulators approved a much-delayed transmission line upgrade Friday that’s needed to retire the state’s last operating coal plant.

Part of a $1.5 billion grid upgrade project, the power lines would run from the Brandon Shores coal-fired power plant in Northern Anne Arundel County to Maryland’s border with Pennsylvania to bring in electricity from that state.

On Friday, the Maryland Public Service Commission affirmed a prior ruling from a utility law judge, granting final approval for the project’s construction.

Delays to the transmission upgrade have postponed the retirement of Brandon Shores, Maryland’s last coal-fired power plant, by as much as six years. The owner planned to close the plant in 2025, but the regional grid operator, PJM Interconnection, twice requested extensions to meet growing power demands.

Federal regulators granted the latest extension, which would keep the coal plant online until 2031, this week.

PJM commissioned Baltimore Gas and Electric to build the transmission upgrade in 2023, and the utility company submitted an application to the Public Service Commission in March 2024.

In a statement, BGE President Tamla Olivier thanked the commission and urged Maryland leaders to seek solutions to the state’s dwindling power output.

“While this approval provides clarity on the immediate steps needed to maintain reliable service for our customers, the continued loss of in-state generation makes it even more important for policymakers, industry leaders, and other stakeholders to work together on sustainable, long-term energy solutions for Maryland,” Olivier said.

The utility company aims to complete its transmission project by December 2028, though closing Brandon Shores could take longer. PJM hinted in recent federal filings that delayed infrastructure upgrades and shifting grid demands could make the coal plant’s power necessary beyond 2031.

New demands from data centers and other sources have added pressure to the regional power grid even as large generators in Maryland have retired. If grid reinforcements don’t come soon, PJM has warned, the region could see brownouts and blackouts.

This grid stress has spawned controversial transmission line projects across the state. The 37-mile Brandon Shores project would run along existing rights of way, rather than clearing forests and farmland like a separate planned project to the west.

BGE has estimated the transmission lines alone will cost $350 million, and other related work — including investments in new and existing substations, line rebuilds and new transmission circuits — pushed the project to $1.1 billion. Years of delays and a changing economy increased it to $1.5 billion.

The project is expected to lead to an “average increase of $2 to $4″ on BGE customers’ monthly bills, according to a March filing from the Public Service Commission’s utility law judge.

The extension of Brandon Shores already has cost ratepayers, and consumer advocates have pushed back on the transmission project’s price tag.