Embracing the next generation of coal
Published by Louise Mulhall,
Editorial Assistant
World Coal,
South Australia is wrong to reject the full range of fuel sources in its energy mix and it is households and industry users that will be forced to pay higher price and suffer unreliability and outages as a consequence.
It is plain wrong to characterise coal as is in the past and indeed if this was a genuine view South Australia should stop sourcing coal based power from Victoria and abandon plans to import electricity from NSW.
NSW of course need all forms of energy in the mix and that includes renewables and gas - but it also means high efficiency, low emission (HELE) coal-fired generation.
Technology leaders including Germany and Japan have embraced next generation coal and it has much lower greenhouse emissions. In fact, coal generation using HELE technology is expanding right across the world with 1015 supercritical or ultra-supercritical in operation and another 1231 planned or under construction.
Electricity from coal is affordable and is available 24 hrs - every day of the year - and now it offers a clean solution, and relative to other base load generation such as gas it is affordable, has less price volatility and is readily sourced.
To add to their suitability, HELE plants are designed to ramp up in order to meet electricity demand as required, thereby strengthening an energy network weakened by non-synchronous weather dependent renewables.
The MCA has also previously warned if this wider electricity problem is not sorted out living standards will fall and prices will keep rising.
To keep lights on and our public services and industry safe and strong, a diverse energy approach is the best response.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/power/14032017/embracing-the-next-generation-of-coal/
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