Midwestern Governors Association Energy Security and Climate Stewardship Platform: Clean Coal Technology Must Play Role


MILWAUKEE, Nov. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — A spokesman for the Center for Energy and Economic Development (CEED) said the Midwestern Governors Association (MGA) should continue to keep energy security and economic growth as basic tenets of its efforts to create a Midwest Climate Stewardship Platform.


Scott Wiseman, CEED Midwestern Regional Vice President, said discussions at the energy summit that focused on steps to ensure a stable, reduced-carbon energy supply for the 21st Century took into account the inextricable link between energy, economy and the environment. “Participants at the Midwestern Governors Association meeting seemed to understand that a pragmatic approach on the issue of climate change recognizes how it ties into our economy and energy security,” Wiseman said. “I applaud them for recognizing the role of clean coal technology as it relates to energy reliance and affordability.”


Nationwide, the ability to provide a reliable supply of electricity has become more challenging in recent years, according to the National Electricity Reliability Council (NERC). The NERC projects that the available installed capacity margin will decline nationally from approximately 18 percent just a few years ago to about 7 percent in 2015.


For general reliability planning purposes, the NERC recommends a national reserve margin of 11 percent and a 15 percent reserve margin in the Midwest Region to ensure a safe and stable supply of electricity. “Thankfully, our governors recognize that it will take a combination of increased energy efficiency and additional generation, a portion of which will include new advanced coal-based power plants to maintain a reliable and safe supply of electricity to meet the region’s needs,” Wiseman said.


The coal-based industry is committed to the continued environmental improvement of America’s coal-based generating fleet. Because of that commitment, the industry continues to invest billions of dollars in advanced technologies such as supercritical & ultra-supercritical pulverized coal, which provide higher electric output with a significantly lower GHG emissions profile compared to existing coal plants.Integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC), another important component of a growing suite of ultra-clean technologies for coal, is forecasted to have a GHG emissions profile similar to or better than natural gas combined cycle generation. Finally, carbon sequestration technologies are currently being tested and demonstrated and must be given more time and funding to produce feedback to ensure the complete and successful deployment of these technologies.


“The Midwestern Governors Association has stated that the U.S. needs policies in place that advocate innovation and reinvention in the country’s energy infrastructure and clean coal technology is destined to play a significant role in that,” Wiseman said.


For more information on the link between energy, economy and the environment, visit http://www.ceednet.org/.


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Source: Center for Energy and Economic Development