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New Mexico gubernatorial candidate vows to halt closing on San Juan Generating Station

(Susan Montoya Bryan | The Associated Press) This Nov. 9, 2009, file photo shows the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station near Farmington, N.M. Officials in northwestern New Mexico are grappling with the likely effects of the coal power plant closure near the Navajo Nation and in one of the nation's poorest states. Farmington Mayor Nate Duckett told state lawmakers Thursday, July 26, 2018 that the Four Corners region is "a ticking time bomb" waiting for the generating station to close. That because the plant provides needed jobs and revenue.

Farmington, N.M. • GOP gubernatorial candidate Steve Pearce says if he is elected he will work to prevent the closure of coal-fired power plants in the Four Corners area.

The Daily Times of Farmington, New Mexico, reports the Hobbs Republican told an audience last week he would seek to find potential buyers for the San Juan Generating Station and other coal-fired power plants.

The San Juan Generating Station is primarily owned by the Public Service Company of New Mexico, which has announced plans to shutter the power plant in 2022.

Those plans have local leaders worried about the economic impact of closing the plant, including the loss of jobs and tax revenue.

Pearce, a congressman in New Mexico’s southern district, is facing Democratic Congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham in November in the governor’s race.