Coal is king, once again. Coal-fired power plants outpaced both natural gas and nuclear power plants as record-cold temps hit the East Coast last week.
Coal-fired power plants are king again as sub-zero temperatures sent demand for heating and electricity soaring on the East Coast Friday in the largest energy market in the nation.
Coal outpaced both natural gas and nuclear power plants in the PJM market, which extends from the Midwest to Washington, according to real-time updates provided by the grid operator PJM Interconnection….
The surge in coal electricity production is expected to remain high going into next year because of a bump in the price of natural gas, which has become the dominant source of electricity in recent years.
The current cold snap could provide a much-needed boost for the Trump administration’s proposal to provide market-based incentives in PJM and other markets to ensure coal plants are not pushed out of the market by natural gas.
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