Washington Cap-and-Trade Exemptions Curb Competition, Court Told

Chicago-based power company Invenergy Thermal tried to convince a panel of Ninth Circuit judges Wednesday that parts of Washington state’s cap-and-invest program impede out-of-state energy competition.

Washington-based utilities get “enormous benefit” from the state Climate Commitment Act’s no-cost allowances, which allow utilities to create carbon emissions while generating power, Invenergy attorney Michael Mestitz of Williams & Connolly LLP said during oral arguments at the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Meanwhile, Invenergy must buy allowances to emit greenhouse gases under the state’s climate law. Invenergy owns the Grays Harbor Energy Center power plant through its subsidiaries, and the ...