Extending life of West Virginia coal plants key to Morrisey's energy expansion initiative

Quick takes:

Extending the life of the state’s nine coal-fired power plants is “Priority No. 1,” of Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s “50 by ’50” energy expansion initiative, with the possibility of building new ones also on the table.

Morrisey says shortages of turbines, transformers and other components could spark new manufacturing opportunities in West Virginia.

The West Virginia Coal Association says the plan will “supercharge” the state’s coal industry and economy.

CHARLESTON (WV News) — When rolling out his “50 by ’50” energy expansion initiative, Gov. Patrick Morrisey has readily acknowledged the difficulty of the challenge he has set.

The governor has argued that although growing the state’s generation capacity from 15 gigawatts to 50 gigawatts by 2050 will be neither simple nor easy,