Tester Statement on Colstrip Closure

(U.S. Senate) – U.S. Senator Jon Tester released the following statement on today’s announcement that Talen Montana will close two Colstrip units earlier than expected:

“This news is surprising, and I’ll be working to make sure Talen isn’t leaving workers out to dry and is keeping the community and employees informed about what they can expect in this process. And I’ll be holding them accountable for a thorough cleanup of the site.”

The company had originally slated the units for closure in 2022, but it was announced today that they would close at the end of this year.

Tester is an advocate for expanding the Carbon Capture Tax Credit, which provides tax credits to coal power producers and companies that capture carbon dioxide from their units to be used in enhanced oil recovery or directly stored deep beneath the ground. Tester’s legislation, The Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Act, will incentivize the establishment of new carbon capture and sequestration projects that will provide long-term financial certainty to Montana’s coal power producers.