Navajo Nation Negotiating Sale of West’s Largest Coal Plant
The Navajo Nation on July 12 said it has identified a potential buyer for the 2,250-MW Navajo Generating Station (NGS) in Arizona, the largest coal-fired power plant in the western U.S. The Navajo Nation Council, in a joint news release with the Navajo Nation’s Office of the President and Vice President, said the Hopi Tribe supports an agreement to sell the plant in order to keep it open, along with the nearby Kayenta Mine from which the plant sources coal.
The NGS and the adjacent mine generate about one-third of the Navajo Nation’s operating budget and about 80% of the Hopi Tribe’s, with most of the workers at both the power plant and the mine members of the tribes. The plant’s current ownership plans to close the plant near Page, Arizona, by the end of 2019 if the facility is not sold.
The joint release said negotiations are underway with New York-based Avenue Capital Group, a global investment firm that invests in distressed companies and the distressed debt market, as the potential new owner.…
