San Juan Generating Station
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox power station
|name = San Juan Generating Station
|image = P.N.M. San Juan Generating Station, May 2019.jpg
|country = United States
|location = Near Fruitland, New Mexico
|coordinates = {{coord|36.802|-108.439|type:landmark_region:US-NM|display=inline,title}}
|owner = PNM (66%)
Tucson Electric Power (20%)
City of Farmington (5%)
Los Alamos County (4%)
Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (4%){{cite web |title=San Juan Generating Station |url=https://www.enchantenergy.com/san-juan-generating-station/ |publisher=Enchant Energy |accessdate=August 12, 2020}}
|status = D
|th_fuel_primary = Sub-bituminous coal
|th_technology =
|th_combined_cycle =
|ps_units_operational =
|ps_units_decommissioned= Unit 1 (340 MW)
Unit 2 (340 MW)
Unit 3 (496 MW)
Unit 4 (507 MW)
|ps_electrical_capacity = 847 MW (2018)
|ps_annual_generation = 4,674 GWh (2018)
|commissioned = Unit 1: 1973
Unit 2: 1976
Unit 3: 1979
Unit 4: 1982
|decommissioned = Unit 1: 2022
Unit 2: 2017
Unit 3: 2017
Unit 4: 2022
}}
File:SanJuanGeneratingStation NM 2012.jpg
The San Juan Generating Station is a decommissioned coal-fired electric power plant located by its coal source, the San Juan Mine, near Waterflow, New Mexico, between Farmington and Shiprock in San Juan County, New Mexico. Its majority owner is Public Service Company of New Mexico, and other owners include Tucson Electric Power and the Farmington Electric Utility System.
Units 2 and 3 (369 and 555 MW, completed in 1976 and 1979, respectively) were retired in 2017. The plant produced power at $45/MWh in 2018 and 2019.{{cite magazine |last1=Haggerty |first1=Jean |title=Record low solar PPAs in the Southwest mean 'carbon capture is not going to save coal plants' |url=https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2020/05/28/record-low-solar-ppas-in-the-southwest-means-carbon-capture-is-not-going-to-save-coal-plants |magazine=pv magazine USA |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200529150739/https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2020/05/28/record-low-solar-ppas-in-the-southwest-means-carbon-capture-is-not-going-to-save-coal-plants/ |archivedate=29 May 2020 |date=28 May 2020 |quote=The San Juan plant’s cost of producing electricity averaged $44.90 per MWh in 2018 and 2019 |url-status=live}} Unit 1 (369 MW, completed in 1973) was retired in June 2022.{{Cite news |last=Bryan |first=Susan Montoya |title=1 of 2 remaining units closes at San Juan Generating Station |url=https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/1-of-2-remaining-units-closes-at-san-juan-generating-station/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |work=Durango Herald |language=en-US}} Unit 4 (555 MW, completed in 1982) was retired in October 2022.{{Cite web |title=San Juan Generating Station |publisher=SourceWatch |url=https://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/San_Juan_Generating_Station |access-date=2022-12-23 }}{{Cite news |last=Grover |first=Hannah |title=How San Juan Generating Station went from powerhouse to possible closure |url=https://www.daily-times.com/story/news/local/2018/09/25/san-juan-generating-station-power-history-future-pnm-southwest-utility/1072851002/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |work=Daily Times |language=en-US}} The city of Farmington announced the end of a plan the city had to acquire the generating station and run it with a partner as part of a carbon capture and utilization system.{{Cite news |last=Fordham |first=Alice |date=2022-12-22 |title=Despite promises of help, a community struggles after San Juan Generating Station closes |url=https://www.kunm.org/local-news/2022-12-21/despite-promises-of-help-a-community-struggles-after-san-juan-generating-station-closes |access-date=2022-12-23 |work=KUNM |language=en}}{{Cite news |title=Farmington announces agreement to keep San Juan Generating Station open |url=https://www.daily-times.com/story/news/2019/02/23/farmington-san-juan-generating-station-nm/2968802002/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |work=Daily Times |language=en-US}} The closure of the plant and associated mine has resulted in the loss of hundreds of jobs along with tens of millions of dollars in annual tax revenue used to fund schools and a community college.{{Cite news |last=Bryan |first=Susan Montoya |date=October 2, 2022 |title=US shift away from coal hits home in San Juan County |url=https://www.daily-times.com/story/news/local/navajo-nation/2022/10/02/san-juan-county-communities-feel-the-impacts-of-coal-plant-closure/69533460007/ |access-date=2022-12-24 |work=Daily Times |language=en-US |agency=Associated Press}} The plant’s water reservoir was sold to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in 2023 to provide a reliable and sustainable water supply to Navajo homes and businesses. The reservoir was renamed the Frank Chee Willetto Reservoir.{{Cite news |last=Segarra |first=Curtis |date=2023-07-20 |title=After decades of use in a coal power plant, a New Mexico reservoir will help bring water to the Navajo Nation |url=https://www.krqe.com/news/new-mexico/after-decades-of-use-in-a-coal-power-plant-a-new-mexico-reservoir-will-help-bring-water-to-the-navajo-nation/ |access-date=2023-07-22 |work=KRQE News 13 |language=en-US}}
File:Four Corners Power Plant and San Juan Generating Station.jpg on Navajo Nation land (south, left) and San Juan Generating Station (north, right), separated by the San Juan River between Farmington (foreground) and Shiprock (background)]]
