Idaho Power seeks to retire two coal-fired plants

BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Idaho Power wants to retire two coal-fired power plants it says won’t be able to produce electricity at competitive prices.
 
The move is part of a 20-year plan to provide energy for Idaho and Oregon that has drawn critics worried about cost, pollution and energy needs.
 
Boise-based memory chipmaker Micron Technology and the Sierra Club are among organizations that worry the coal plants aren’t shutting down fast enough.
 
Idaho Power, in the 155-page plan released in June, also considers building a 300-megawatt natural gas facility in southwestern Idaho and completing a 300-mile (480-kilometer) transmission line to Oregon to tap into the Pacific Northwest energy market.
 
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission is taking public comments on the plan.