The Power Generation Blog: coal power

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The Hidden Industrial Coal Power Generator of Camp Lejune

Looks can be deceiving. Obviously. The Camp Lejune Globe has a charming (if brief) story about the steam industrial power generator on the Marine Corps Base Camp Lejune.

Marines, sailors and patrons aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune drive on Holcomb Boulevard every day and at one point or another, glance over at the rusty industrial building and have no idea that they are looking at the steam generator plant.

The unnoticed plant actually houses two massive industrial power generators: one, dating back 70 years, is exclusively coal powered, and another, only 25 years old, runs on natural gas and diesel. Overall, the story is a lovely look at how industrial power generators don’t have to be big, flashy, or noxious in order to keep a community powered.

Will Regulation Help The Environment--Or Eventually Harm It?

Despite the fact that the world would cease to function without it, the industrial power generation industry has always faced a few hurdles. The latest set-back for industrial power generation has popped up in Chicago, at the Fisk Generating Station.

The Fisk Generating Station is 108 years old, so clearly it's not among the most cutting-edge or cleantech facilities in the world. Area residents have a decent claim to make when they cite high rates of asthma and respiratory issues; Midwest Generation, who owns the Fisk Generating Station, claims they've been cleaning up their act since taking over in 1999.

On the one hand, yes, the residents are right that old facilities need to be kept up to modern environmental stands. But on the other hand, shutting down a plant doesn't guarantee a better environment. Since it takes long years to build new power generation facilities, residents would only face higher energy costs. The ordinance many residents are pushing for would call for a drastic reduction in particulate matter and CO2 emissions--however, again, either the cost of cleaning up the plants would be passed onto residents, or the ownership would pursue a more profitable business elsewhere. It wouldn't necessarily result in any better living situation; in fact, higher prices and less competition may result in residents having to rely on even less savory power suppliers.

The best course of action may be to work on building investment and development interest in building more cleantech, environmentally friendly power generation options while still relying on conventional coal for the moment. Increasing regulation may help the environment in the immediate situation, but it could stifle development and innovation in the future, which would ultimately be a tragedy for everyone.

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Secret Carbon Tax Revealed in the UK

There is news from the United Kingdom today of a so-called ‘secret plan’ by the British government to tax electricity consumption from carbon-burning power generation plants. This tax is meant to fund the construction of the United Kingdom’s first new nuclear reactors in more than twenty years. This tax is expected to increase an annual household’s energy bill by about £44 per year. Many people are upset since the government ministers have made repeated promises that the nuclear industry would no longer benefit from public subsidies.

The new construction of nuclear power plants and this tax are being carried out because there are growing concerns about the UK’s aging nuclear infrastructure. There is a growing peak energy gap caused by the retirement of old nuclear plants and the long lead time to opening new ones. Adding to this energy gap is public enmity towards plans for the construction of new coal plants. Power companies such as E.ON and EDF Energy are hesitant to build new nuclear power plants because of rising construction costs and falling energy prices. The cost to construct new nuclear plants is in the multi-billions of pounds.

A European energy executive has told the Guardian,

New nuclear will not happen without sorting out the carbon price,

which is bad news for consumers and government ministers, alike. According to the government, the only way to bridge the energy gap and commence swift construction of new nuclear plants is by artificially raising the price of electricity with a carbon tax. The Office of Nuclear Development, a new government unit created to facilitate building new nuclear plants, has promised nuclear companies that the price of carbon under the European Union emissions trading scheme will be disallowed to fall below €30 to €40 per ton. Currently, the price is €13 per ton. Consumers have made clear their desire for cheap, clean energy. Unfortunately, the only way for the government oftentimes to push through such measures is by raising taxes. As the old saying goes, “Cheap, good, and fast: pick two.” The rest of the world should be chastened by these developments in the UK. The power-generation infrastructure of many leading nations is aging at what seems a fast pace. As new, cleaner power generation technologies are created and their costs become reasonable, consumers are going to want to take advantage. However, lower prices means less incentive for energy companies to deliver on substantial improvements to the power grid. The only way to bridge the enthusiasm gap between consumers and power generation companies may be government intervention in the form of higher taxes or incentives.

Good News For Nature?

The Energy Information Administration (EIA), the official energy statistic bureau of the United States government, released its latest outlook report recently, and it contains some good news for opponents of fossil fuels.

Carbon dioxide emissions from coal, oil, and natural gas are expected to drop by 5.9% this year due in large part to the economic downturn and a groundswell of support for green energy and renewable energy sources, which has started to reduce fossil fuels consumption. The EIA outlook report says that reduced coal consumption accounts for 63% of the CO2 emissions decrease. A decrease in petroleum consumption and natural gas account for 30% and 7% of the reduction, respectively.

The EIA outlook report also says that there is an expected rise in power generation from hydroelectric dams and wind farms: 5.4% and 19%, respectively. Power generation from nuclear power plants is expected to remain steady, while solar and renewable biomass power are on a decline relative to last year.

Will Green Energy Create or Cut Jobs?

A recent report, which was based partly on research by the Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology Sydney, was just released by Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC). It states that a shift toward renewable energies and away from fossil fuels could create more than 2.7 million (extra) jobs. Besides the increase over fossil fuels in job growth, a shift toward renewable energies could help combat global climate change.

The report says, in part, “A switch from coal to renewable electricity generation will not just avoid 10 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions, but will create 2.7 million more jobs by 2030 than if we continue business as usual.” Rather than eliminating jobs--as some commentators believe the ramping down of fossil fuel power generation--the report concludes that jobs will actually increase. By investing money and development in solar, wind, tidal, and biomass, two grave problems can be addressed simultaneously. For instance, after the automobile industry, the wind turbine industry is currently the second-largest steel consumer in Germany. The study projects that jobs in power generation will rise from about 9 million today to more than 11 million by 2030; it projects renewables jobs will rise from 1.9 million to 6.9 million. On a related note, it projects that if things continue as they have been, that jobs in coal power generation will fall by about half a million, to 8.6 million by 2030.

The report goes on to say that in 2008, for the first time, both the United States and the European Union added more power generating capacity from renewable energy than from conventional sources such as gas, coal, oil, and nuclear power. The report adds ammunition to supporters of sustainable energy and helps to deflate opponents of sustainable energy who criticize the movement on the grounds that it will stifle job growth.

Ontario Making Strides In Green Energy Initiative

Ontario, Canada is gearing up to make a dent in negative climate change in the province by planning the closure of four coal-burning Ontario Power Generation (OPG) power plants. The plan, part of Ontario’s Green Energy Act of 2009, is taking off four years ahead of its 2014 target. These four coal plant closings are the first in a ten-step transition to Ontario’s generating all of its electricity from green energy.

The four plants are located two each in Nanticoke and Lambton. These plants generate about 2,000 megawatts of OPG’s power capacity. These closings and a previous 2005 closing represent a 40% reduction since 2003 of Ontario’s coal power capacity. Since 2003, Ontario has added more than 4,900 megawatts of natural gas and renewable energy power generation plants. Thus far, the province has converted, refurbished, and built new plants to make progress in the effort.

The OPG is assessing its remaining coal power plants to see if they can be feasibly converted to using fuel sources such as biomass. Its Atikokan Generating Station will be the initial focus of its biomass conversion efforts. OPG hopes to have it converted by 2012.

Ontario has touted its efforts, saying that the closure of the coal plants has resulted in a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions equal to the annual emissions of 7 million automobiles. During the first of this year, the province’s coal production dropped more than 51% and its wind generation rose more than 80% compared to the same period in 2008.

Ups and Downs in China's Coal-Fired Power Industry

There’s some interesting news out of China; the country’s largest electricity provider, Huaneng Power International, Inc., reported a profitable first half of 2009. The company reported a profit of $273.6 million, which is notable since it reported a loss the for the first half of 2008—its first since listing in Hong Kong in 1998—of $79.5 million.

It’s not all smooth sailing, however. Huaneng issued a statement saying, “there are still risks of tight coal supply.” It added, “the coal market is still fraught with uncertainty and instability,” and warned that coal supply and its rising price could create some difficulties in the power generation industry. Some of these difficulties have arisen because of intense negotiations between China’s top power generation companies and coal miners over price caps and coal production. Coal-based power plants produce nearly 80% of China’s electricity.

The Power Generation Blog

The Hidden Industrial Coal Power Generator of Camp Lejune

Will Regulation Help The Environment--Or Eventually Harm It?

Secret Carbon Tax Revealed in the UK

Good News For Nature?

Will Green Energy Create or Cut Jobs?

Ontario Making Strides In Green Energy Initiative

Ups and Downs in China's Coal-Fired Power Industry

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