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Fossil Fuels for Decades and Beyond
By Frank Clemente, RealClear Energy
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STATE COLLEGE, PA (June 4, 2020) – The easy thinking flies smoothly off the keyboard: “Fossil Fuels are Done;” “End of the Oil Era;” “The Inevitable Death of Natural Gas;” “The Demise of King Coal;” on and on, a parade of abstractions unconnected to the empirical world but sounding good, nevertheless. Preying on everyone’s wish for a clean, healthy environment, special interest groups push their rhetoric far beyond the reality of what is happening in energy and what will continue to happen in coming decades.
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Rising Global Coal Demand by 2050 Unavoidable, DOE Official Says
By Dean Scott, Bloomberg Law
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NEW YORK, NY (June 4, 2020) – The U.S. and other nations will need to mount a massive effort to capture and store carbon dioxide from coal-fired power plants because coal will remain a dominant source of global energy use through 2050, a Trump administration official said Thursday.
“Fossil fuels are here to stay. They are not going to be a transition fuel,” with global consumption slated to increase globally by 2050, largely due to increased demand from developing nations, says Lou Hrkman, a Department of Energy deputy assistant secretary for fossil energy.
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NERC Encouraged to Examine Impact of Increased Coal Retirements on Grid Reliability
By Michelle Bloodworth, America’s Power
Rich Nolan, National Mining Association
Jason Bohrer, Lignite Energy Council
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WASHINGTON, DC (June 2, 2020) – We are writing to encourage NERC to update its “Generation Retirement Scenario – Special Reliability Assessment” (SRA) that was published approximately 18 months ago. The SRA evaluated the reliability implications of accelerated (sooner than expected) retirements of coal-fueled and nuclear electric generating capacity.
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Ex-FERC Commissioners Debate Solutions to Coal Self-Commitments Said to Cost Millions
By Catherine Morehouse, Utility Dive
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WASHINGTON, DC (June 1, 2020) – Reports from the Union of Concerned Scientists, Sierra Club and others are finding that self-committing coal-fired power is costing consumers across wholesale power markets millions of dollars annually. Within the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) region, uneconomic self-commitment cost ratepayers $350 million in 2018, averaging $60 per customer, according to a report released last week from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).
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Despite COVID-19, ERCOT Expects Record Summer Demand; Retired Coal Plant May Resume Service
By Sonal Patel, POWER
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AUSTIN, TX (May 14, 2020) – Despite uncertainties posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) again expects to shatter its peak demand record this summer. Factoring in changes to its generation profile, extreme weather, and low wind output, the grid operator expects energy alerts are still possible.
ERCOT’s forward-looking projections for capacity, demand, and reserves are murkier, however, owing mainly to the unknown duration and impact of the pandemic on economic growth.
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How Many Coal-Dependent Jobs Are There and How Important Are They?
By Terry Headley, American Coal Council
Dr. Roger Bezdek, MISI
Public Utilities Fortnightly
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WASHINGTON, DC (June 1, 2020) – The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimate that the number of jobs in the U.S. coal industry currently totals about 53,000. This paper utilizes a combination of existing data from various government and industry sources and original research to derive a more accurate estimate of the current coal-dependent employment in the U.S. — taking into account the coal industry’s entire profile…
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Editor’s Note: This article was first published in the June 1, 2020 edition of Public Utilities Fortnightly.
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Carbon Capture Getting Lots of Renewed Attention
By Staff, IEA, Clean Coal Centre
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LONDON, UK (June 3, 2020) – Supported by advances in new technology and federal support through grants and tax incentives, the nascent carbon capture sequestration (CCS) industry might well be in a stronger position today than ever before. The high cost and complication of carbon capture technology have created several obstacles for success over the years.
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A New Federal Government Collaboration Will Support Investment in CCUS Technology in Rural America
By Staff, United States Energy Association
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WASHINGTON, DC (May 27, 2020) – There is promise—and progress—in the development of carbon capture, utilization and storage, and clean energy technologies. In rural America, especially, the potential for next generation CCUS is both a lifeline for economic and job security and a benefit for the environment.
Last year, the US Department of Agriculture and the US Department of Energy entered into a comprehensive collaboration to support commercial deployment of CCUS and other energy projects…
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Trump Order Waives Project Environment Rules to Push COVID-19 Recovery
By Debra K. Rubin, Mary B. Powers and Jim Parsons, Engineering News-Record
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WASHINGTON, DC (June 5, 2020) – Citing the “national emergency” spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic hit, President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that directs federal agencies to bypass environmental laws to expedite infrastructure projects, including those on federal lands, as a stimulus.
Legal challenges are expected to follow. Also speculated is how or whether recent federal court rulings that reinforce or extend environmental permitting will clash with the order.
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EPA Limits States’ and Tribes’ Ability to Protest Pipelines and Other Energy Projects
By Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis, Washington Post
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WASHINGTON, DC (June 1, 2020) – The Environmental Protection Agency finalized a rule Monday curtailing the rights of states, tribes and the public to object to federal permits for energy projects and other activities that could pollute waterways across the country.
The move, part of the Trump administration’s push to weaken environmental rules it sees as standing in the way of new development…
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Blackhawk Mining Sold to Sev.en Energy
By Staff, Appalachian News-Express
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PIKEVILLE, KY (June 2, 2020) – Local mining company Blackhawk Energy announced June 1 that it has been acquired by Czech Republic-based Sev.en Energy.
According to a statement, Blackhawk is one of the largest U.S. metallurgical coal producers.
With annual production capacity of 7-8 million tonnes of metallurgical coal among its five underground and open pit mining complexes in West Virginia and Kentucky…
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Ramaco Forms Coal-to Products Partnership with National Lab
By Pat Blair, Sheridan Media
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SHERIDAN, WY (June 2, 2020) – Ramaco Carbon has entered into a partnership with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the nation’s largest U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) science and energy laboratory, to explore innovations for the conversion of coal to high-value advanced carbon products and materials.
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Coal Market Strategies – August 3-5, 2020
Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn, Sonoma, California
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As states begin to reopen after closures due to the coronavirus, ACC continues to evaluate plans for hosting our Coal Market Strategies conference. As part of that evaluation, we recently did a survey to obtain input from ACC members and prospective attendees. Your feedback is helpful and most appreciated. We anticipate making a decision this month and will communicate further then. Please be assured that your health, safety and comfort are ACC’s top priority.
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