Coal interests and the Environmental Protection Agency just faced off before the Supreme Court in a case that could drastically choke off the agency’s ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

West Virginia led petitioners to have the court put locks on the administrative state, which court-watchers of all persuasions agree that conservative justices want to achieve. But some are doubting after Feb. 28’s oral arguments that the case is a guaranteed win for the judicially conservative view, even on a court with six justices nominated by Republicans, in large part because of the tricky procedural circumstances of the case.