Prairie State coal plant at center of high-stakes Illinois energy debate – Energy News Network

"Prairie State is owned by a consortium of nine public power agencies that made controversial and in some cases economically devastating binding deals with more than 300 municipal utilities and electric cooperatives across eight states. Critics say that ratepayers in these communities are being forced to subsidize unnecessary and overpriced carbon-intensive power, and that forcing Prairie State to close or ramp down earlier could provide both environmental and economic relief."