American Gas - June 2013 - (Page 9)

study’s lead researcher, told American Gas. “So if you’re projecting that the price of natural gas will stay low during the time-frame when you’re considering the investment, it may make sense to move to natural gas, even with the risk that the price of gas will rise later.” Pratson and his colleagues assessed the cost of generation at facilities that produce 95 percent of the nation’s coal-fired electricity and 70 percent of its gas-fired electricity. They estimated costs using multiple scenarios for fuel prices and emissions standards. At current prices and emissions standards, 9 percent of coal plants were more expensive to run than a typical gas plant. If the price of gas increased only slightly, gas no longer held an advantage over coal. But with stricter emissions standards, 65 shutterstock/bibiphoto percent of coal plants were more costly to run. And gas maintained its lead even if its price rose substantially. A key reason for the discrepancy is that many gas plants exceed only nitrogen oxide standards, while coal plants typically violate multiple emissions thresholds. The study made a few assumptions. “We didn’t try to estimate whether addressing one emission control, like sulfur dioxide, might also reduce another, like particulates,” Pratson explains. “Likewise, we didn’t try to estimate whether it might be less costly to address emissions through cap and trade rather than controls.” On the other hand, Pratson says, “we didn’t factor in additional regulations, such as coal ash or water efficiency, that plants may have to comply with later.” One factor tempering the shift from coal to gas could be the cost of the build-out of pipelines and other infrastructure. But “based on everything we’ve heard from talking to utilities,” Pratson reports, “many utilities would like to move toward natural gas and away from coal faster and to a greater degree than has been anticipated.”—Eric Schoeniger C E L E B R AT I N G YEARS Your Committed Partner for 75 Years Quality Compression Fittings www.NORMACnow.com • Phone: 630.232.8111 june 2013 AmericAn GAs 9 http://www.NORMACnow.com http://www.NORMACnow.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - June 2013

American Gas - June 2013
Contents
President’s Message
Subject Index
Safety: It Takes a Village
Digest
Issues
Update
Need to Know
Need to Know
By the Numbers
Places
On the Market
State House
Elm Street
The Calm Before the Storms
Profile 28
2013 AGA Membership Directory
Jobs
Buyer’s Guide
Marketplace
Headway

American Gas - June 2013