Client: Earthjustice
Author: Elizabeth A Stanton, PhD
July 2026
On behalf of Earthjustice, Principal Economist Elizabeth A. Stanton, PhD prepared expert testimony on Puget Sound Energy’s (PSE’s) 2026 Rate Case in the context of Washington State’s clean energy regulations that require increasing shares of non-emitting electric generation over time. Specifically, Dr. Stanton finds:
PSE is not planning to meet the Washington Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA) greenhouse gas neutrality requirements for 2030
PSE’s proposal to acquire a seventeen-year Tolling Agreement with TransAlta that converts the Centralia coal-fired plant to gas-fired generation is in misalignment with CETA
PSE failed to carry its burden of proof showing that the TransAlta Tolling Agreement is prudent. In particular, the Centralia gas-fired plant would be uneconomic to run in six out of seventeen years of the agreement.
PSE failed to adequately compare the financial cost of meeting expected capacity needs with one or more clean energy resources with the TransAlta Tolling Agreement, despite having received several economic bids for wind, solar, and solar plus storage in their 2024 All-Source Request for Proposals.
On this basis, Dr. Stanton recommends that the Washington Transportation and Utilities Commission disallow the TransAlta Tolling Agreement.