02Nov

Coal’s Comeback

Via The Bluefield Daily Telegraph: Coal is making a comeback in southern West Virginia and Southwest Virginia. In fact, hundreds of miners will soon be returning to work in Mercer, McDowell and Tazewell counties. The active coal operations, and the new workers they are hiring, will provide a boost to the region’s economy. Bluestone Resources, a […]
01Nov

Why We Need To Keep Coal In The Power Mix

Via Investor’s Business Daily:  Most American’s take electricity for granted, assuming when they flip a switch or plug in an appliance power will be available. But behind the power outlets is a huge and complex infrastructure that includes generation, transmission and distribution. In addition, each regional power grid has a “system operator” who makes sure […]
01Nov

A Return to Reason…and the Law

Comments were due this week on EPA’s ACE rule – a welcome return to reason on the heels of its predecessor rule: the Obama administration’s “signature” anti-coal rule, the costly power plan (CPP). Replacing the CPP with ACE brings the EPA back into the realm of the legal, appropriately respecting the balance between state and […]
29Oct

What’s Ahead for U.S. Electricity Demand This Winter?

Via The Morning Consult: The 2018 winter was rough. A “bomb cyclone” struck much of the eastern United States in late December and early January, plunging major cities into a deep freeze. Overall, it was a particularly cold season, and power demand rose considerably for home heating. With autumn now taking hold, some are wondering […]
24Oct

The Big Data Power Surge

It may not have blast furnaces and assembly lines, those iconic symbols of heavy industry, but there’s a new energy-intensive industry rising right before our eyes and its growth could very well upend forecasts for future electricity demand. This new heavy industry – and the infrastructure to support it – is the data industry. As […]
23Oct

President Trump’s Affordable Clean Energy Rule is a Win for Alabama

Via Yellowhammer News: Protecting ratepayers and ensuring that we have a reliable, secure and affordable supply of electricity in Alabama is the lens through which I view energy policy. It was through this lens that I saw the Obama administration’s so-called Clean Power Plan (CPP) as a significant threat to our state and that I […]
18Oct

Coal Still Has a Big Role in Producing Electricity

Via The Richmond Times-Dispatch: An argument increasingly heard these days is that coal, largely because it is carbon-rich, should be decreased compared to most other energy resources. However, coal still plays an important role in Virginia since coal and natural gas each supply 27 percent of the state’s electricity, while nuclear power accounts for 39 […]
17Oct

Embrace the Pragmatism of Low Emissions Coal Technology

In 2013, the World Bank Group decided to limit financial support for coal-fueled power plants to what it deemed “rare and exceptional circumstances.” It was a decision that almost immediately made perfect the enemy of the good and, as the World Coal Association (WCA) argues in a new report, has likely proved counterproductive to achieving […]
16Oct

Can America Support Millions of Electric Cars in Electric Age?

Via The Herald-News: There’s little doubt that a global technology revolution is under way. And the sweep of change over the past decade alone has been stunning. Electric cars and smart phones are proving that the world has gone high-tech. Many analysts now believe that a “deep electrification” of the U.S. economy is coming, too, […]
14Oct

Coal Production: A Differing Tale of Two States

Via The Bluefield Daily Telegraph:  It was an interesting tale of two states last week with regard to coal production in West Virginia and Virginia. In the Mountain State, officials confirmed that second quarter coal production gains in southern West Virginia had increased over a million short tons from the first quarter of the year to […]