Five cities in Missouri that claimed a coal-fired power plant was polluting the air are complaining how they were hit with higher utility rates when the plant closed.
Now they’re wanting the state to do something about the higher rates imposed by Ameren Missouri.
The cities wanted $10 million in damages so Ameren decided to close the power plant and that’s when electric rates went up for the residents of Fulton, Marceline, New Madrid, Hannibal and Kirkwood. They paid 191% more than cities in other MISO zones, as alleged by a complaint against Ameren Missouri. Now the matter is before the Missouri Public Service Commission and arguments will be heard this week.
The News Tribune reported the controversy arose when the cities accused Ameren of violating federal air pollution rules at Ameren’s 1.1GW Rush Island Coal Plant. The company was accused of two violations in 2007 and 2010 when Ameren added power generation to the plant but did not add air pollution control devices. In 2024, Ameren reached a $61 million federal court settlement after it was found the company had illegally polluted the air.
What Ameren did next stunned the cities. It decided it would be cheaper to shut down the plant rather than install the air pollution control devices and did so with court approval in October 2024. It sent electricity prices skyrocketing for the municipalities, according to the Public Service Commission.
Rush Island’s closure, along with increased local demand, meant cities in Ameren Missouri’s coverage area paid a clearing price of $719.81/MW-Day in the fall of 2024 and spring of 2025. In other coverage zones across the Midwest and Great Plains, the average clearing price sat at $15/MW-Day in fall 2024 and at $24.10/MW-Day in spring 2025. The cities will not be able to secure financial compensation from the Public Service Commission case, as the PSC ruled it only had jurisdiction over whether Ameren violated its PSC tariff and if the company violated the original 1971 PSC order issued when Rush Island opened.
