TRENTON — New Jersey has lost approximately 2,708 megawatts of in-state energy generation capacity since 2017 due to the closure of seven major power plants, according to available data. The shutdowns, which include nuclear, coal, and natural gas facilities, have forced the state to increasingly rely on imported electricity at potentially higher costs.
To make matters worse, little to no energy production replacements have materialized during that time. This includes the failure of Governor Phil Murphy’s offshore wind energy agenda and a struggling solar energy plan that to date has not produced a substantial amount of new energy for the community at large.
The closures began in 2017 with the Hudson and Mercer Generating Stations, both coal-fired plants, which collectively provided over 1,000 MW of capacity. The following year, the Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station, once supplying 619 MW, was taken offline in Lacey Township.
In 2018, the Deepwater Generating Station, a 156 MW natural gas plant, also closed. The B.L. England plant in Upper Township—another coal-fired facility with 450 MW of capacity—shut down in 2019 after a planned conversion to natural gas was abandoned.
More recently, two additional coal plants—Logan Generating Plant (219 MW) and Chambers Cogen Plant (244 MW)—closed in 2022.
Together, these seven closures represent a significant reduction in local generation. “These closures represent a total loss of approximately 2,708 MW of generation capacity, significantly impacting New Jersey’s energy supply and contributing to the rising electricity rates and increased reliance on imported power,” the report notes.
While many of the shutdowns were tied to environmental and policy goals aimed at transitioning the state away from fossil fuels, critics argue that the closures outpaced the development of replacement capacity from renewables or other sources.