MARYLAND (WBFF) — As electric bills continue to climb across Maryland, a Republican candidate for governor is blaming the state’s energy policies and calling for fossil-fuel power plants to remain open longer.
During a press conference held at the already-closed Charles P. Crane Generating Station in Middle River, Republican gubernatorial candidate Ed Hale argued that Maryland has moved too quickly to shut down power plants without having enough replacement energy sources in place — a shift he says is now showing up on monthly utility bills.
“It’s like another mortgage payment,” Hale said, describing what many families are paying for electricity.
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Over the past several years, Maryland has retired or scheduled the closure of multiple fossil-fuel generating stations as part of a broader effort towards cleaner, greener energy. One of the most notable examples is the Brandon Shores power plant, one of the state’s largest coal-fired facilities. While it was originally scheduled to close in 2025, Brandon Shores is now expected to remain operational until at least 2029, kept online at a higher cost due to grid reliability concerns.
Hale argues the closures are a mistake, saying Maryland’s shrinking energy supply is contributing to higher electric bills.
“We have a lot of fossil fuels here that burn a lot easier and cleaner than the old days,” Hale said,” I’m thinking that we have to do better, and we have to reopen the plants that have been not torn down, and just get them open again and reenergize them.”
Many state leaders and environmental advocates disagree, saying fossil fuels carry higher long-term costs tied to pollution, health impacts, and aging infrastructure. They point to Governor Wes Moore’s proposed Lower Bills and Local Power Act, which includes a $40 energy rebate, a push for transmission and grid upgrades, and new funding for solar and energy storage projects.
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“Energy policy is about making sure that we can have that marriage between increasing supply and making sure we can make it affordable for the people who need it,” Moore said at a previous press conference.
Hale dismissed the $40 rebate as inadequate and continued to argue that the transition away from coal, oil, and gas is happening too fast at a time when many Marylanders are struggling to pay their bills now.
FOX45 reached out to Governor Moore’s office for a response to Hale’s remarks. As of publication, no response had been received.
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