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IEA Says Southeast Asia Will Keep Coal Demand High

October 29, 2017

The International Energy Agency (IEA) says the need for cheap electricity in Southeast Asia will drive global demand for coal for power generation through 2040, even as many countries continue to retire coal-fired plants and cancel projects for new coal facilities.

IEA, which is set to release its World Energy Outlook 2017 on November 14, this week said India and Southeast Asia will account for the majority of the use of coal in the coming years, as those areas’ economies continue to grow and demand for electricity rises.

“Coal maintains a strong foothold in [Southeast Asia’s] projected consumption, not only because it is markedly cheaper than natural gas, but also because coal projects are in many cases easier to pursue as they do not require the capital-intensive infrastructure associated with gas,” the IEA said in a report in advance of the release of the November outlook.

The agency said about 100 GW of new coal-fired power generation capacity is expected to come online in Southeast Asia by 2040, increasing the region’s installed capacity to about 160 GW.…

Operator Reverses Course, Will Keep Running Montana Coal Plant

August 13, 2017

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The operator of one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the Western U.S. will continue to run the facility, changing course about a year after a company executive said the plant was not economically viable.

A spokesman for Talen Energy confirmed to POWER on August 9 that the company will continue to operate the 2,094-MW Colstrip Generating Station in Montana. The company last year told the ownership group it would need to find a new operator by mid-2018.

Todd Martin, a spokesman for Talen, told POWER in an email: “I can confirm that the ownership group has determined that Talen Montana will continue to operate the Colstrip Station.” He said the company would have “no additional public information to share at this time.”

The Billings (Mont.) Gazette first reported August 9 that Colstrip would remain open, based on its interviews in the past week with representatives of the six utilities that co-own the plant.

Montana legislators earlier this year approved a deal that would allow Pennsylvania-based Talen to borrow up to $ 10 million a year to keep the plant operating until 2022.…

Wind and Solar Cross 10% U.S. Generation Share as Prices for Solar Keep Falling

June 19, 2017

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Marking a significant milestone, power generation from the combined utility-scale and small-scale wind and solar installations in the U.S. surpassed 10% of the nation’s total power generation in March, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The news comes on the heels of an announcement last week by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) that installed system prices for solar systems have fallen across all market segments. Also for the first time, fixed-tilt utility-scale systems dipped under the $ 1/W barrier, SEIA said.

Breaking the Barrier—on a Gigawatt-Watt Level

The EIA said on June 14 that generation from wind and solar has grown steadily since 2007. On an annual basis, wind and solar generation made up 7% of total U.S. power generation in 2016.

The EIA noted that wind and solar follow seasonal patterns. Wind patterns vary based on geography. Wind generators in Texas and Oklahoma, for example, have their highest output in spring, while California generators see a boost in output in the summer.…

Interior Dept., Peabody Energy Seek to Keep Coal-Fired Navajo Plant Open

April 17, 2017

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The Navajo Generating Station can continue to be competitive under a reduced-price fuel proposal through 2040, said Peabody Energy, the coal giant which owns a coal mine currently fueling the Arizona plant.

The utility owners of the Navajo plant on February 16 voted to shut down the 2,250-MW coal-fired power plant in December 2019. The decision to close the plant on tribal land near Page along the border with Utah was based on the “rapidly changing economics of the energy industry,” which has seen natural gas prices sink to record lows, the plant’s owners said.

The plant is operated by Salt River Project (SRP). SRP is a utility owner along with Arizona Public Service Co., Tucson Electric Power Co., and NV Energy. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is a participant in the project.

But according to the Arizona Republic, Peabody Energy told regulators last week that the power plant could profit under new ownership. The newspaper reported that the coal company’s officials are “positioning the Navajo Generating Station for new buyers to come in and take over the troubled coal plant, which would allow the company to continue selling coal to the facility” from its Kayenta Mine in northern Arizona.…

Fight to Keep EPA’s Clean Power Plan Alive Intensifies in Federal Court

April 7, 2017

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A coalition of 24 states and localities have urged a federal court reviewing the merits of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Clean Power Plan to stall the agency’s recent motion to suspend a case challenging the controversial rule.

West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (No. 15-1363) is arguably the most important set of environmental cases in nearly a decade. For the U.S. power sector, the stakes are particularly high. The sector has grappled with uncertainty about the Clean Power Plan’s future since the Supreme Court issued a stay of the rule on February 9, 2016.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the case before an en banc panel on merits of the EPA’s controversial rule on September 27, 2016.

Twenty-seven states are challenging the legality of the rule finalized by the EPA under the Obama administration. They are: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.…