CHARLESTON — Gov. Jim Justice said Wednesday he still wants to see the Pleasants Power Plant near St. Marys saved, but it is up to the West Virginia Public Service Commission to decide whether it should be allowed to operate for another year with ratepayers picking up the tab.

Speaking during his weekly virtual administration briefing from the Capitol, Justice said he was pleased that FirstEnergy Corp. subsidiaries Monongahela Power Co. and Potomac Edison Co. submitted a plan to the PSC at the end of March to operate the plant for a 12-month period while it considers a more permanent proposal. Pleasants Power is slated for closure on May 31.

“I think we ought to let the PSC do their job and everything and let them dig into all the details,” Justice said. “I’ll be getting more and more details. I’m aware of the task or what it’s going to take supposedly from Mon Power and FirstEnergy and everybody in regard to keeping the plant open.”

The PSC will hold an evidentiary hearing at 9:30 a.m. April 21 at its headquarters in Charleston to consider a proposal from Mon Power and Potomac Edison for the plant. The companies are seeking an order from the PSC no later than April 25 authorizing the companies to enter into a letter of intent with Texas-based Energy Transition and Environmental Management to operate the plant from June to May 2024.

The companies would reimburse ETEM for the costs of maintaining the plant for that 12-month period, but they are also seeking a temporary surcharge to cover the costs of reimbursing ETEM to keep the plant open. The surcharge would increase costs for residential customers by $2.67 per month, $8.44 per month for commercial customers and $4,416 for industrial customers. It would raise $36 million over a 12-month period, or $3 million per month.

The 1,300-megawatt plant burns more than half a million tons of coal annually and employs 154 direct employees not counting hundreds of union workers who service the plant each year and the coal miners who supply the plant. Thursday, April 27, will mark 45 years since 51 workers died when one of the plant’s cooling towers collapsed due to green concrete, considered one of the worst construction accidents in U.S. history at the time.

“It would be a crying shame for the plant to die,” Justice said. “If you just step back and think about it, that’s 154 jobs right there in Pleasants County. That’s huge for Pleasants County, but not only that, 400 coal mining jobs supplying the plant with coal. That’s huge. The multiplier effect of those jobs is enormous. We want to try with all in us to find a methodology and a way to be able to keep that plant open.”

Opponents of keeping the plant open include a number of environmental and consumer advocate groups. Operating under the banner of West Virginians for Energy Freedom (WV4EF), they argue it is unfair to keep the plant open on the backs of ratepayers. They also argue that it could cost ratepayers more in the future to keep the plant compliant with current environmental rules and regulations.

According to WV4EF, customers of Mon Power and Potomac Edison have seen their electric rates increase by 50 percent over a 15-year period.

“The costs of the proposed bailout would fall squarely on Mon Power and Potomac Edison customers, as all power plants owned by regulated utilities are paid for by customers, including the costs of purchasing, operating, and maintaining the power plants,” according to the group. “Beyond the immediate expense of the bailout, $80-$120 million in improvements are needed for the plant to comply with water pollution standards.”

Justice said now that Mon Power and Potomac Edison’s cards were on the table, it was important for the PSC to review their proposal.

“Now that we have the ask or the delta of where we need to go, now let’s let folks dig into the weeds and see what we come back with,” Justice said. “But I’m glad we have a delta rather than before when all we had before was ‘we’re considering it.’ Now we’ve at least got a delta.”

The PSC announced Wednesday evening that it would also hold a public comment hearing at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, April 20, at the PSC headquarters at 201 Brooks Street in Charleston.

“There is a tremendous amount of public interest in this case, with widely varying opinions,” said PSC Chairman Charlotte Lane in a statement. “We invite everyone to come and share their suggestions and concerns with us on April 20. If you can’t be here in person, you can still submit a written comment.”

The PSC is accepting written and online public comments. Written comments for Case No. 22-0793-E-ENEC can be sent to P.O. Box 812, Charleston, WV 25323. Online comments can be submitted at psc.state.wv.us by clicking “Submit a Comment” on the PSC homepage.