Coal-fired plant's owners weigh options that include closure

PHOENIX (AP) — The Navajo Generating Station's operator says its owners are considering options that include keeping it open but also closing the massive coal-fired power plant in northern Arizona within a few years. Salt River Project spokesman Scott Harelson says officials of the power district recently met with Navajo Nation officials to discuss the plant located on the Navajo reservation near Page. A Navajo environmental advocacy group, Dine Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment, accuses SRP of talking about possibly closing the plant to extract lease concessions from the Navajo Nation, which Harlson denies. Harelson says the owners are weighing utilities' options for obtaining economical power and hope to decide its future by spring. Owned by utilities and a federal agency, the plant employs hundreds and is considered important to the local economy.