Trump proposes higher payments for coal, nuclear power

[omarsultan]

Part of small government in action

Trump proposes higher payments for coal, nuclear power

 

[Merrill]

Part of the reason coal is going away is that solar and wind are getting cheaper, so if this is his game plan it will only make it worse.

 

[TheTalkingMule]

Reviving that nuclear project in Georgia is essentially the same as stealing about $500M from ratepayers statewide.

 

[GoTslaGo]

Isn't a government mandate on pricing = subsidies?

I guess he doesn't see any irony on his stance?

Republican Congressman to Oil and Gas Industry: ‘No More Subsidies’

Quote:

During the Republican primary in 2012, Perry’s energy plan website stated: “As part of a broader tax reform strategy, I will also ask Congress to eliminate direct subsidies and tax credits that distort the energy marketplace. My plan levels the playing field.”

End quote.

 

[trils0n]

Nope, not a subsidy (duh, those are for the other side). Perry is saying that coal isn't being priced adequately for all it does. A price adjustment is needed because of the un-priced positive externalities of coal.

He mentions grid stability as the reason. As I understand it, the price of grid stability is already directly priced and included in the price of electricity (just like electricity has wholesale, transmission and distribution costs, it also has costs for uptime/downtime, frequency regulation, etc. All of those things have direct prices, and are included in the price of electricity).


(As a side note: for an administration that is often painted as being in chaos/disarray, everyone is remarkably and consistently on point for their propaganda. This is just the latest example of their style of propaganda. A nonsensical reversal of their opponents position. Namely, the problem isn't the negative externalities of coal, but that the positive ones aren't accounted for.)

 

[SageBrush]

Coal is a piss poor choice for grid stability. Surprise surprise, NG and batteries are not included in the favored fuel sources.

This is just the White House jackasses using a feeble excuse to feed money to the coal mines.

 

[bkp_duke]

This is AWESOME. Stupid decisions like this will only accelerate the adoption of solar, wind, and battery storage.

Shouldn't there be an IQ requirement to serve in public office? We could eliminate so many public officials from both parties with that.

 

[omarsultan]

This is a kinda entertaining follow-up:

Analysis | The Energy 202: Rick Perry manages to unite oil, gas, wind and solar — against him

Perhaps my favorite quote:

“This is the first time we've filed a motion in conjunction with API,” said Gil Jenkins, a spokesman for the American Council on Renewable Energy

 

[mspohr]

Latest cost estimate for bailing out nuclear and coal... up to $34 Billion a year!
Report Projects DOE Coal, Nuclear Bailout Costs Could Top $34 Billion

 

[mspohr]

“Bill Gates became the richest bloke on Earth off the end of the mainframe,” said Neil Eckert, chairman of Aggregated Micro Power Holdings Plc, an energy services company that installs small power plants. “We are seeing the end of the energy mainframe. The world will have to learn new techniques -- how to invest in small-scale distributed energy.”
From Bloomberg article moaning about utilities difficulty in dealing with renewables.
Power Worth Less Than Zero Spreads as Green Energy Floods the Grid

 

[mspohr]

Looks like the genius Rick Perry couldn't figure out a way to pay to keep coal alive except by raising prices for consumer so Trump seems to be backpedalling on his plan to make coal great again:
Even Trump is beginning to realize that he can’t save coal
"The Trump administration appears to be backing away from its widely criticized plan to bail out coal. At the same time, U.S. coal power generation hits a 35-year low, and coal company bankruptcies are increasing."

 

[Merrill]

It does not take a brain surgeon to figure this out, but since Trump has no brain no surgeon needed.

 

[William13]

Bloomberg online has credited a hit piece on electric cars today from Byrrell Consulting claiming diesel cars are lifetime cleaner than electric. More FUD using coal electricity as source of CO2.

 

[SageBrush]

Bloomberg online has credited a hit piece on electric cars today from Byrrell Consulting claiming diesel cars are lifetime cleaner than electric. More FUD using coal electricity as source of CO2.

In other news, a HUMMER is a better environmental choice than a Prius.

 

[mspohr]

Renewables industry stays vigilant against Trump’s use of national security to prop up coal

This report shows that renewables hold up better to natural disasters than coal, nuclear, etc.
The report, “The Role of Renewable Energy in National Security,” highlights how renewable energy resources have withstood recent extreme weather events, helping to provide secure and reliable electricity to the nation, including U.S. Department of Defense installations.

 

[TheTalkingMule]

Saw Rick Perry was yapping the other day on the DoE facebook page, the entire speech was him telling NIST or some other group of scientists about how worried he is that the grid's going to go down in winter after a coordinated attack. Funny that the head of the DoE doesn't even understand basic vulnerabilities of a centralized grid.

 

[mspohr]

Looks like Trump is going to try to use national emergency excuse to mandate subsidies to coal and nuclear and prohibit closing plants.
A nuclear October surprise?

 

[S'toon]

The largest regional electric grid operator in the nation sees “no imminent threat” to the reliability of its system, despite the closure of several coal and nuclear plants in the mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions.

PJM Interconnection LLC released a fuel security study Thursday that said there are “no issues” with powering the grid network, even as it loses more than 15,000 megawatts of generating capacity through mostly coal and nuclear plant retirements.

The study was prepared in response to a grid resilience proceeding launched by federal regulators in January. It throws cold water on the Trump administration’s efforts to justify a nationwide coal and nuclear plant bailout due to an impending threat.

<snip>

Full article at:
Grid operator study shows Trump bailout of coal and nuclear plants is unnecessary

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

I assume he'll try harder. The forecast bump in coal use this year hasn't materialized and there are more retirements forecast for the next two years. Trying to avoid embarrassment at the next election.

 

[David99]

“Bill Gates became the richest bloke on Earth off the end of the mainframe,” said Neil Eckert, chairman of Aggregated Micro Power Holdings Plc, an energy services company that installs small power plants. “We are seeing the end of the energy mainframe. The world will have to learn new techniques -- how to invest in small-scale distributed energy.”
From Bloomberg article moaning about utilities difficulty in dealing with renewables.
Power Worth Less Than Zero Spreads as Green Energy Floods the Grid

I sure wish the power companies would adjust their prices accordingly. I think that's where connected chargers and 'vehicle to grid' technology could help a lot. Tell me (my charger) when power is abundant and the car will start charging to use the surplus of energy (at a low price). My utility company has this old rigid system where off peak electricity is only cheaper at night. Obviously that's an old and outdated concept here in Southern California with such a high number of solar installations.