Coal Power Loses Ground As Renewables Outcompete In The US

According to a recent assessment, coal plants now produce energy that is more expensive than solar and wind energy, indicating the end of the coal-fired era in the United States. The demise of the coal industry appears likely due to the declining costs of renewable energy sources. When a team of academics evaluated the running expenses of the 210 coal plants in the US to the costs of building new solar and wind farms, 99% coal plants were found to be more expensive than their renewable counterparts. The sole exception was the Wyoming-based Dry Fork facility, which barely managed to keep up with renewable energy.

Coal Vs. Renewable Energy

Coal-fired power plants typically cost $36/ megawatt-hour, but new solar energy costs $24/ megawatt-hour. The researchers discovered that the savings from switching to renewable energy sources could be used to add 137 gigawatts worth of batteries, which are required because solar and wind energy are intermittent.

The US’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which was passed last year, has made renewable energy significantly less expensive. The act provides tax incentives to encourage the use of clean energy investments and mitigate the effects on areas dependent on coal by generating jobs and tax money for them. Nevada is one of the states that have made the first moves in this regard.

Natural gas is growing in popularity as a desirable alternative transition fuel, while coal facilities all around the country are ageing and becoming costly to maintain. This was primarily because of the war in Ukraine. In 2020, coal production in the US fell to its lowest level since 1965. Although there was a minor uptick in production in the years that followed.

Among of all fossil fuels, coal emits the highest greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. Countries must halt new coal projects to decrease climate disaster and achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, but this isn’t happening as quickly as it should be. As per reports, there is an increase in coal use, particularly in Asia.

Insight

In terms of popularity, renewable energy is surpassing coal, indicating a trend towards clean energy. According to a recent analysis, practically all US coal facilities are currently more expensive than brand-new renewable energy sources, and this trend is most likely to persist in the future. The era of coal-fired power is ending, and the switch to clean energy is the way to go.

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