Coal power plant in Montana closing two of four units蒙大拿州的一家火力发电厂关闭了四家中的两家One of the largest coal-fired power plants in the western US will close two of its four units in coming days as the Montana facility edges toward an eventual total shutdown.

美国西部最大的燃煤电厂之一将在未来几天关闭其4座机组中的2座，这家位于蒙大拿州的电厂即将全面关闭。

Colstrip Units 1 and 2 — built in the 1970s when massive strip mines were being developed across Montana and Wyoming — will close by Jan.

5 or as soon as they run out of coal to burn, Talen Energy spokeswoman Taryne Williams said Thursday.

Colstrip 1号和2号机组建于上世纪70年代，当时蒙大拿州和怀俄明州正在开发大型露天煤矿。

The plant employs about 300 people and is the main driver of the economy for the surrounding town of Colstrip, which has about 2,300 people.

But it’s been unable to compete with surging investments into renewable energy and cheap natural gas, as the coal plant’s operating costs have risen with the need for better pollution controls.

这家工厂雇佣了大约300人，是周边城镇Colstrip的主要经济推动力，该镇约有2300人。

但是，由于燃煤电厂的运营成本随着更好的污染控制的需要而上升，它无法与投资激增的可再生能源和廉价天然气相竞争。

Some employees for now will be re-assigned to decommissioning work that will last through mid-2020, Williams said.

She said there are no hard and fast numbers or timelines” as the company considers how many workers will be needed for the remaining two units.

威廉姆斯说，目前一些员工将被重新分配到2020年中期之前的退役工作。

她说，公司在考虑剩下的两个部门需要多少工人时，没有硬性的数字或时间表”。

The closure of Units 1 and 2 was long anticipated as demand for US coal collapsed in recent years and came despite vows by elected officials in Montana to find ways to keep it open.

1号和2号机组的关闭早在人们的预料之中，因为近年来美国的煤炭需求大幅下降，尽管蒙大拿州民选官员发誓要设法让它继续运营。

The two closing units are operated by Pennsylvania-based Talen, which co-owns them with Puget Sound Energy of Washington state.

这两家即将关闭的工厂由总部位于宾夕法尼亚州的Talen公司运营，该公司与华盛顿州的Puget Sound Energy共同拥有这些工厂。

Sen.

Duane Ankney, who represents Colstrip in the Montana Legislature, said the impending closure was a prime example” of how out-of-state interests were hurting the coal industry to the detriment of Montana.

在蒙大拿州立法机构中代表Colstrip的参议员安克尼(Duane Ankney)说，即将关闭是州外利益如何损害煤炭行业、损害蒙大拿州利益的最好例子”。

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