electricity prices

01May

The Biden-EPA’s Alternate Reality

While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to brush aside deep alarm over the grid reliability impacts of its new blitz of power plant rules, evidence is rapidly mounting that the nation’s supply of electricity is already in deep, deep trouble. In the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) market, which covers much of the […]
12Oct

Germany’s Coal Conundrum

Despite ongoing talk across Europe of weaning off coal, European coal-generated power production grew by around 9 percent in September. With winter cold approaching and Europe’s energy crisis far from over, that growth may well continue, and Germany, specifically, is once again turning to its coal fleet as an energy security failsafe. Germany’s cabinet has […]
28Jun

Federal Coal Leasing is a Success Story

As the Department of the Interior considers the future of the federal coal leasing program, it’s worth noting what a success the program has been, how important it remains to mining states and communities and how essential coal remains in the nation’s energy mix. The federal coal leasing program has provided hundreds of millions of […]
26Apr

And the Winner is… 

If anyone’s taking nominations for misleading reports, we have a leading contender: a recent report that argues that rising electricity prices in West Virginia are the result of the state’s reliance on coal power, going as far to imply that coal is an economic burden on the state. The report is built on the fact […]
22Mar

Handcuffed to Natural Gas Volatility

Can U.S. natural gas be two maddeningly contradictory things at the same time? The answer appears to be a resounding yes. The nation’s supply of natural gas has become both the crutch of the U.S. energy system and also an energy affordability and reliability landmine. Once persistent fears of natural gas shortages were turned on […]
08Mar

The Great Coal Disconnect

British consumers should be furious. Energy bills have all but wrecked the economy and delivered searing pain for households. Britain’s rush to slash its use of coal – that as of a decade ago met 40% of the nation’s power – left the nation extraordinarily exposed to the natural gas price spikes that came with […]
08Feb

The Country Needs Coal Too Mr. President

Call it an admission of pragmatism. While talking to the nation’s energy future last night during the State of the Union address, President Biden went off script and admitted that “we’re still going to need oil and gas for a while.” It was a statement of fact even if it made climate hawks grimace. What […]
01Feb

New Study Underscores Threat to the Nation’s Grid Reliability

The latest iteration of a headline-grabbing study, “The Coal Cost Crossover” – which claims the entirety of the existing coal fleet is less economic than new renewable projects – is exactly the type of academic clickbait driving the nation’s reckless approach to the energy transition. Like previous versions, this iteration of the report once again […]
14Dec

American Manufacturers Warn Against Coal Retirements

U.S. natural gas prices have tripled in a year, and promises of its abundance are now being replaced by growing concerns of scarcity as demand outpaces interstate pipeline capacity. Supply chokepoints and regional price premiums are emerging across the country and it’s a problem poised to get far worse as more essential coal generating capacity […]
16Nov

A Vote for Realistic Energy Policy

Last week, we covered President Biden’s speech made in California in which he boasted that “we’re going to be shutting these (coal) plants down all across America.” The comment was remarkable in its apparent disregard for the loss of high-paying American jobs such a move would cause, the seeming indifference to the record electricity prices […]