Will high natural gas prices increase coal use?
In an article from yesterday鈥檚聽, the magazine states that the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts that coal generation will gain in 2013 due to the rising price of natural gas.
According to the article: 鈥淭he increasing cost of natural gas relative to coal is expected to increase coal鈥檚 share of total generation from 37.4% in 2012 to 39.9% in 2013, according to the EIA April release of its Short-Term Energy Outlook.
Though that would leave coal鈥檚 percentage below its 42.3% share in 2011, it indicates that gas may not be on an inevitable path to overtake a significantly greater share of the generation pie.鈥�
Just today, a聽聽was held for the聽听颈苍 Arkansas. The 600-megawatt coal-fueled plant began commercial operations in December 2012 and is one of the cleanest, most efficient coal-fueled plants in the United States, and the first of its kind in operation in the United States.
EIA figures also show that coal consumption will increase both聽听补苍诲听聽to meet rising electricity demand during the next several decades, providing the U.S. and other countries with indigenous energy resources.
