Varcoe: With electricity prices set to rise, agencies fight over mothballing coal-fired power plants

By Chris Varcoe | March 29, 2018

In just a few days, TransAlta Corp. will mothball two of its coal-fired power generating units in Alberta. But days before the move occurs, a high-stakes battle has erupted between two influential agencies within the deregulated power system: the Alberta Electric System Operator, which manages the province’s power grid, and the electricity industry’s watchdog, the Market Surveillance Administrator.