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Obama’s policies kill U.S. state-of-the-art coal technology

12 Feb 2015

At the end of 2012, the most technologically-advanced coal-fired power plant in the United States went online in Arkansas. If the Obama administration has its way, this is the end of the road for ultra supercritical coal-fired power plants in this country. China, on the other hand, is the world’s leader in constructing and operating ultra supercritical coal plants.
The first U.S. ultra supercritical power plant became operational at the end of 2012 at the Southwestern Electric Power Company John W. Turk facility.[i] Proposed rules by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have put any plans to build more of these highly efficient and clean facilities on hold, despite the innovations this type of plant provides. This ultra supercritical coal plant generates electricity more efficiently at higher temperatures, requires less coal and produces fewer emissions to generate the same amount of power as other coal units. EPA has two proposed rules—one dealing with new plants and the other with existing plants—that would result in no new coal plants being built in the United States because they cannot meet the proposed specifications.
What is an Ultra Super Critical Plant?
An ultra-supercritical unit operates above supercritical pressure and at advanced steam temperatures above 1100°F (593°C), resulting in a more efficient steam cycle. At supercritical pressures, water is heated to produce superheated steam without boiling. Due to the improved thermodynamics of expanding higher pressure and temperature steam through the turbine, a supercritical steam generating unit is more efficient than a subcritical unit. The increased efficiency reduces fuel consumption, solid waste, water use and operating costs.[ii]
The Turk Plant
Southwestern Electric Power Company, an operating unit of American Electric Power, began commercial operation of its 600-megawatt John W. Turk, Jr. Power Plant on about 3,000 acres near Fulton, Arkansas on December 20, 2012. It cost $1.8 billion to build. The Turk coal-fired plant burns 180,000 fewer tons of coal and produces 320,000 fewer tons of carbon dioxide each year, making it 15 percent more efficient than any other coal plant in the United States.  The plant uses low-sulfur coal from the Powder River Basin in Wyoming.Southwestern Electric Power Company began construction of the Turk plant in November 2008, providing up to 2,200 construction jobs at peak employment in May 2011 and 109 permanent positions with an estimated annual payroll of $9 million. The plant provides $6 million in annual school and county property tax revenues in Southwest Arkansas. Besides serving Arkansas’ wholesale customers, the plant provides power to retail and wholesale customers in Louisiana and Texas, as well as Oklahoma’s Municipal Power Authority. The plant is a base-load facility designed to meet demand for power that is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.[iii]
EPA Proposed Rules
On September 20, 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency issued a proposal for carbon dioxide reductions from new coal- and natural gas-fired power plants. The proposed rule, the “Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas emissions From New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units,” sets emission limits at 1,100 pounds per megawatt hour for coal-fired plants and 1,000 pounds per megawatt hour for large natural gas-fired turbines. Smaller natural gas-fired turbines producing approximately 100 megawatts of electricity or less would be allowed 1,100 pounds per megawatt hour.[iv] Natural gas units can meet the proposed rule; but coal-fired units cannot without adding carbon, capture, and sequestration technology that is not commercially available.
Thus, if this rule goes into effect, no new coal fired units would be built.
On June 2, 2014, EPA released its regulation mandating carbon dioxide emission standards for existing power plants. This proposed rule requires the electric generating sector to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. To do this, EPA proposed specific emissions goals for each state. For example, Arkansas’ target is a 44.5 percent reduction—much higher than the national average of 30 percent. EPA identified four “building blocks” that states can use to meet their targeted reductions: heat rate improvements; using less carbon intensive electric generating units; using more low- or zero-carbon generation; and using demand-side energy efficiency. States must submit their implementation plans to meet the proposed rule by June 2016 or apply for an extension.
 
 
Source: http://www.rightsidenews.com/