Bianca Sanchez, bianca.sanchez@sierraclub.org
TAMPA, FL. – The Florida PSC approved a plan to shutter the coal-burning equipment at Tampa Electric Company (TECO)’s Polk coal plant, a move recommended and championed by the Sierra Club. This will mark the 388th coal plant to retire since the Beyond Coal campaign, supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, launched in 2010.
While the Polk plant coal equipment has been in long-term reserve since 2018, the Public Service Commission’s decision will ensure that no coal is burned at the facility moving forward and reduce annual Polk-related expenses by $1.5 million. Notably, the Commission also rejected TECO's bid to spend $18.2 million in ratepayer dollars on studying experimental carbon capture and storage technology at the Polk plant.
However, these positive moves were dampened by the PSC’s approval of a significant rate increase for TECO customers, as well as the utility’s costly plans to convert Polk into a gas plant at a cost of $90.1 million, and to add fuel-oil burning capacity to the unit at a cost of $53.9 million. The Sierra Club and our allies strongly oppose these dangerous and reckless decisions to double down on fossil fuels, especially since TECO relies on gas for nearly 90 percent of its energy supply.
“While we breathe a sigh of relief at the retirement of coal equipment at Polk, our relief is heavily tempered by the substantial rate increase, which will further strain Tampa families and business,” said Walter Smith, Sierra Club Florida’s Tampa Bay Organizing Representative. “Many in our city are already struggling to rebuild from Milton, a hurricane that further revealed the vulnerabilities of TECO’s reckless fossil fuel reliance. Now, TECO plans to drive up ratepayer costs in order to fund the construction of fossil fuel energy sources that worsen the climate crisis. In the face of these setbacks, we commit ourselves to fighting for cost-effective, clean energy that bolsters our grid, protects our public health, and considers the economic plight of impacted people. We call on our fellow Tampeños to join us in these efforts to achieve environmental justice."
Sierra Club analysis has shown that TECO is likely overbuilding generation resources by refusing to count solar facilities towards its planning reserves and by planning for a winter peak, even though TECO has been a summer-peaking utility for over a decade. It is likely that TECO will have no reliability need for Polk and Big Bend in the near future, yet TECO continues to double down on spending ratepayer funds on these resources, while the PSC continues to rubber stamp that funding.
This fall, TECO received its second consecutive failing grade, according to the Sierra Club’s 2024 Dirty Truth Report. The Sierra Club’s annual Dirty Truth Report assigns utilities scores and grades based on three criteria: plans to retire polluting coal plants by 2030, plans to build new gas power plants through 2035, and plans to develop clean energy through 2035. TECO’s failing grade is due, in part, to the utility’s plan to continue to burn fossil fuels at Big Bend Generating Station in perpetuity, along with its plans to add 535 MW of new gas power by 2035.
The PSC is expected to release its complete written decision on Dec. 19.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.