Industry News: Eight States Sign A Pact To Increase EV Sales

[Drew Dowdell]

As much as I appreciate your links from Cleancoalusa.org, coal is not our future. It will remain in our infrastructure, but it will be diminishing over time. But who are you going to believe... the coal industry lobby website or the guy that works for one of the larger energy companies in the country?

[G. David Felt]

Coal has a bright future in this country as an export to China. China is where we were 40 years ago.

[regfootball]

As much as I appreciate your links from Cleancoalusa.org, coal is not our future. It will remain in our infrastructure, but it will be diminishing over time. But who are you going to believe... the coal industry lobby website or the guy that works for one of the larger energy companies in the country?

they are both lobbies. energy companies are lobbies. you can certainly legislate coal out of existence if you wish i suppose. The reasons for which, may not be sound.

truth is if something is plentiful / there, cheap to farm and is available, it will be used.

Edited October 31, 2013 by regfootball

[Drew Dowdell]

You mean like wood? By your reasoning, we would be using wood for electricity generation.

While coal as fuel may be cheap, the costs to burn it cleanly are high... as the standards for coal plant emissions increase, the cost effectiveness of burning the cheap fuel will decrease.

Additionally, the energy from natural gas can be extracted more completely. A gas turbine with a regenerator and heat capture is like two power plants in one. The exhaust gases from such a setup are released at temperatures similar to a hot Texas day. Coal simply cannot do that.

Coal plants are closing. Natural Gas plants are being built. Follow the trend line.

I said I work for an Energy company... but I don't work for a company that does generation (we have some wind farms in Texas for token "green" cred, and a few gas generation plants in Canada, but that's it)... we don't have a dog in this fight aside from wanting to being able to buy energy cheaply at wholesale and sell it higher at retail.

[regfootball]

be interested to hear the future of chicken $h! into electrical power. A recent project was the building for said process and it really only existed as a project because of renewable energy mandates and a ton of govt money.

So the company in question was able to harvest all that dough and pay the execs a bunch. By accounts, the plant just opened. All the countryside dislikes it, didn't wan't it. It apparently from what I hear will not pan out to stay open long. Certainly not beyond ten years is what I have heard as the whole process just cannot make enough electricity for the cost and hassle.

I like the idea of renewable energy sure who doesn't but there should be cost monitors and constraits to vet any power solution and plant that gets built so it isn't just an exercise in saying they can.

There has to be a balance between what you can continue to mine cheaply and other means to make it as not everyone who buys the power is made of money. Especially since you never have a choice to buy power or pick how much you want to pay.

Edited November 1, 2013 by regfootball

[Drew Dowdell]

You have to live in a state with electricity choice. If you can't choose your provider, then you need to write your state government. Texas has hundreds of providers, my employer is one of the larger ones. I can pick from dozens here in PA.

Coal is just too expensive to burn cleanly. Natural gas is cheaper when both are meeting emissions regulations.

[A Horse With No Name]

This thread has nothing to do with sales figures.It's about someone wishing the government spend billions of dollars of taxpayer money to create infrastructure for alternative fuel sources, instead of using resources that already exist and are widely, cheaply implemented.So you're okay with that?Or, you believe burning a limited resource that is needed for a plethora of industrial processes and consumer goods, while polluting the atmosphere and increasing public healthcare expenses, is the best way forward.You're endorsing one or both.

This is brilliant!

You have to live in a state with electricity choice. If you can't choose your provider, then you need to write your state government. Texas has hundreds of providers, my employer is one of the larger ones. I can pick from dozens here in PA.

Coal is just too expensive to burn cleanly. Natural gas is cheaper when both are meeting emissions regulations.

Coal comes with other enormous costs environmentally As well.

China is buying our cheap coal.

...and even the Chinese see the sense in getting off of this stuff.

[Drew Dowdell]

The Chinese are also buying our nuclear reactor technology. Westinghouse runs a very profitable business here in Western PA designing and building reactors for China.

[A Horse With No Name]

As much as I appreciate your links from Cleancoalusa.org, coal is not our future. It will remain in our infrastructure, but it will be diminishing over time. But who are you going to believe... the coal industry lobby website or the guy that works for one of the larger energy companies in the country?

Reality is challenging at times....

The Chinese are also buying our nuclear reactor technology. Westinghouse runs a very profitable business here in Western PA designing and building reactors for China.

The Chinese want to move into the future with clean energy. We should follow their example.