Youll Never Believe Where Our Electricity Still Comes From
Today, We Live in a Modern World
Google Is Driving Cars for Us
And Tesla Runs Cars on Electricity
But Where Does Our Electricity Come From?
Solar? 74% of new electricity came from solar in Q1 2014
Utilities photovoltaic solar capacity grew 171% between Q1 2013 and
Q1 2014 Total solar capacity is expected to grow 39% year over year
for 2014
Nope. Only 0.23% of total electricity came from solar in
2013.
Wind? Offshore wind can power our nation -- four times over On
March 26, wind power provided 29% of Texas total electricity load
General Electric (NYSE: GE) cited wind turbines as one of its
fastest-growing businesses for 2013
Nope. Only 4.13% of total electricity came from solar in
2013.
Natural Gas? Natural gas-generated electricity soared 59%
between 2003 and 2013. In 2007 (and every year since), natural
gas-generated electricity surpassed nuclear-generated
electricity.
Nope. Just 27% of total electricity came from natural gas in
2013.
Coal
Coal Despite increasingly stringent environmental regulations,
coal continues to hang on as our nations largest electricity
source. 39% of our electricity begins its life as a lump of
coal.
Coal Despite regulatory expenses, coal is still cheap:
Coal And for utilities that produce power close to its sources
(Midwest and Appalachia), coal remains an essential piece of their
energy portfolio.
Coal FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE) generates 57% of its electricity
from coal.
Coal And to help keep regulatory costs low, its scrubbing the
majority of its coal to keep Uncle Sam satisfied.
Coal FirstEnergys coal- fired power plants in Ohio, West
Virginia, and Pennsylvania are well positioned to keep
transportation costs low.
Coal American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) relies on coal for a
similarly large 60% of its 38,000 MW of generation. AEPs 600 MW
Arkansas coal- fired power plant uses new combustion technology to
reduce emissions and increase efficiency.
Coal AEP had previously announced that it estimated its coal
dependency to drop to 46% of its generation portfolio in 2020. But
in April, the utility revised that number back up to 51%,
potentially because of both natural gas price increases and AEPs
new coal technology advancements.
The Future The future of coal is still far from clear. But like
it or not, it remains an integral part of our energy system. And as
long as it makes the most economic sense for companies such as
FirstEnergy and AEP to keep pulling power from coal, theyll keep
doing exactly that.
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