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Firm Narrows Potential Buyers For Arizona Coal-Fired Plant

An investment firm tasked with finding a new owner for an Arizona coal plant says it's focused on one potential investor with a handful of others on the sideline.

The Navajo Generating Station near Page is set to close in 2019 if no one steps in to buy it.

The coal company that supplies the 2,250-megawatt power plant, Peabody Energy, hired Lazard Freres to help find someone.

Lazard representative George Bilicic did not identify the potential buyer Thursday during a congressional hearing. But he says it's a reputable company that operates power plants.

The Navajo and Hopi tribal governments want help from federal officials to keep it open.

Others want to see a transition to renewable energy and say running the plant beyond 2019 makes no economic sense.