Coal

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Tesla models make up more than half of US EV sales in 2021.
• A Michigan utility wants to be one of the first in the US to go coal-free.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Florida Power & Light (FPL) yesterday demolished its last coal-fired plant, the Indiantown Cogeneration Plant in Martin County, east of the Everglades. And right before the plant imploded, FPL CEO Eric Silagy announced that the utility will build a solar center near the site.

The costs of most existing coal-fired power plants in the US are now more expensive than the total costs of wind and solar as a result of their plunging costs, according to a new study.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• A climate group report shows fossil-fuel financing continues to rise despite Paris Agreement pledges.
• The world’s largest coal mining company sets its sights on solar.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• China built more new wind farms in 2020 than the world combined in 2019 – and a lot of coal plants.
• Supermarket chain Aldi announces its new clean energy and sustainability goals.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

India’s coal power has continued to decline since reaching a peak in 2018, according to an analysis by independent climate and energy think tank Ember. India’s coal-fired electricity generation fell 5% in 2020 due to significantly reduced annual electricity demand as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. It is the second consecutive year that coal power has fallen, with coal generation down 8% in 2020 compared to 2018.

West Virginia is getting a 115 MW wind farm, which will increase the state’s wind power by 15%. Here’s why that’s a really big deal – and why West Virginia’s governor, Jim Justice, is so excited.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Arizona’s Navajo Generating Station coal plant’s smokestacks have been toppled — VIDEO.
• The Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance releases principles to accelerate US commercial fleet electrification.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Bob Murray, the board chairman of Murray Energy, the largest privately owned — and bankrupt — US coal operator, died on Sunday at age 80. He had announced his retirement less than a week before.

Bob Murray, ex-CEO of the now-bankrupt Murray Energy, has filed for black lung benefits, as reported today by West Virginia Public Broadcasting. Murray Energy was once the largest private coal mining company in the US, and Murray, who spent decades as a coal miner himself, is currently dying of black lung.

The Polish government announced on Tuesday that it would be making a major pivot away from coal and toward green and nuclear energy. Here’s why.

In its first corporate sustainability report, the federally owned utility Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) says it’s on track to reduce emissions by 70% below 2005 levels by 2030.

But on Monday, Donald Trump fired two members of its board of directors, including its chair, on the grounds that it’s hiring low-cost foreign labor. The TVA says that’s not true. So what’s really going on?

Green energy, which includes wind, solar, hydro, and bioenergy, has generated 40% of European Union electricity for the first time in 2020, compared to fossil fuels generating 34%, independent think-tank Ember said in a half-yearly report.

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United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres yesterday urged countries to stop financing coal and pledge not to build new coal-fired power plants. Guterres made his statements at an online summit hosted by the International Energy Agency (IEA), which drew over a half-million online viewers.

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Out of Spain’s 15 coal-fired plants, seven ceased operations on June 30. Four more will soon follow, putting Spain on track to ultimately become coal-free. The country closed all its coal mines two and a half years ago as a result of the European Union banning their state aid.

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On February 20, Hartshorne Mining Group, who owns Poplar Grove, a thermal coal mine in western Kentucky that was lauded as the first to open under Donald Trump’s pro-coal administration, filed for bankruptcy. Hartshorne then filed a lawsuit against the US government this month because they were not awarded coronavirus relief money.

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A coal mine in South Tyneside that has been abandoned since 1932 will be transformed into a green energy heating system as part of a new £7 million renewable energy plan.

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Just days after Austria shut its last coal power plant, Sweden has followed suit with the closure of Stockholm Exergi AB’s Värtaverket plant, two years ahead of schedule. Belgium shut down its last coal power station in 2016.

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American coal generation declined 36% in March compared to the year before. With oil prices at new low levels, coal is now the most expensive fossil fuel on the planet. Reuters reports that nearly half of global coal plants will run at a loss this year. That’s all sad news for coal country, but it means that electric cars continue to get cleaner.

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