01Mar

A Warning Not to be Ignored

How valuable is a balanced, diverse mix of energy sources? Just ask the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), the grid operator that manages the electricity grid for much of the U.S. Midwest and parts of Canada. When the polar vortex hammered the Midwest at the end of January, the grid weathered the storm, but it […]
27Feb

Deep Freeze a Chilling Reminder We Still Need Coal, Nuclear Energy

Via The Duluth News Tribune: The stunning cold that swept the northern United States recently — and slammed Minnesota and the Midwest, in particular — was eye-opening for many Americans. It reminded us just how dependent we are on modern infrastructure for our survival. Nature is not always kind, and the depth of these Arctic […]
25Feb

Coal Power Still Gets NH Through Coldest Days of the Year

Via The New Hampshire Union Leader: New Hampshire will soon be home to the only coal-fired power plants left in New England, and the owner of those power plants says they will be burning coal for the foreseeable future. That’s not good news for environmental groups like the Conservation Law Foundation and Sierra Club, who’d […]
22Feb

Building a Better Future from West Virginia to India

The world’s population is racing towards 10 billion by 2050. It’s an astounding number that has huge implications for global energy use but also for material needs. As populations grow, urbanization is growing as well. A higher and higher percentage of us are living in cities. The United Nations reported last year that 55 percent […]
21Feb

The Green New Deal’s Impossible Electric Grid

Via The Wall Street Journal: The Democrats’ Green New Deal calls for a fully renewable electric power grid. Regardless of the economic or political challenges of bringing this about, it is likely technologically impossible. An electric power grid involves second-by-second balancing between generated supply and consumer demand. In the case of a sudden imbalance—such as […]
15Feb

Arch Coal Announces New Mine in Barbour County

Via 12WBOY: Arch Coal announced Thursday that it has started developing a new longwall mine in Barbour County. The mine, which will be called Leer South, will be in the same 200 million ton reserve base that Arch’s current Leer mine, in Taylor County, is in. Arch officials estimate that, each year, the new mine will […]
15Feb

Trump Administration Approves 2 Coal Mining Projects in Utah

Via The Olympian: The Trump administration on Thursday announced the approval of two coal mining projects in southern Utah, including one nestled between two national parks in the state’s red rock region. The U.S. Department of the Interior announced the mining projects in a news release Thursday, declaring “the war on coal is over,” touting […]
14Feb

Evaluating Grid Reliability Requires Examining What’s to Come, Not What’s Been

It was the study energy wonks were sure was going to be a deal maker or breaker in the ongoing debate about fuel-secure sources of generation and the reliability and resilience of the grid. It turns out, the study is neither of those things. E&E News obtained the unpublished draft study, and, if anything, it […]
13Feb

A Timely Reminder of the Essential Value of Coal Power

Via The Exponent Telegram: Weather can be unforgiving. And the nation’s latest turn with the “polar vortex” was a reminder of just how merciless it can be. With temperatures across much of the country dipping well-below zero, our energy systems, particularly the electricity grid, were pushed to the limit. Once again, coal power plants came […]
11Feb

Power Grid Serving 65 Million May Be at Risk in East, Midwest

Via The Hill: Electricity is the most important and convenient way to consume energy. Without it, we’d literally be living in the “Dark Ages.” However, we often forget that it takes energy to make energy. With the electricity generation mix changing dramatically in recent years, this is no simple task.  There is no more disputing […]