This has caused unhappiness among some coal companies which have no alternative means of transport.
As expected, some coal plant owners made the same overblown arguments about reliability threats, costs and so forth that we are now hearing again.
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But that, so runs the argument, would have happened anyway - and if some coal replaces some nuclear, then emissions will have been increased compared with what would have happened without the change.
Lower gas prices will increase energy consumption and displace some lower-carbon nuclear power and renewables, but will also squeeze out some dirty coal and oil.
The latest subsidy changes mean that for many firms it's not worthwhile building bespoke biomass power stations, but it is worthwhile converting some existing coal-burning stock.
"From 2011 to 2015 there are going to be some new coal units needed in Texas, " says ThadHillThad Hill, president of NRG's Texas business, noting that natural gas facilities will probably address the state's growing energy demand until that date.
Some are coal and natural gas.
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"From 2011 to 2015 there are going to be some new coal units needed in Texas, " says Thad Hill , president of NRG's Texas business, noting that natural gas facilities will probably address the state's growing energy demand until that date.
According to Platts, there are some 13GW of thermal energy capacity, comprising mainly hard coal but some lignite and gas, already under construction in Germany.
They found some papers on coal-fired fuel cells but decided they probably wouldn't work.
There might be some alternatives to coal, but they are not likely to completely replace coal use in India.
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It also said that ministers had to consider keeping some of the coal-fired power stations earmarked for closure online.
So, it can take some time before coal companies in the U.S. can take advantage of the booming Asian coal market.
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But Republicans still have the power to block climate legislation in the Senate, especially with some Democrats from coal and industrial states also ambivalent about cap-and-trade.
Higher oil prices will be a benefit, but excess demand could keep natural gas-focused names in the doghouse, while some analysts like coal to continue its unexpected star turn.
The Edison Electric Institute and some of its coal-based utility members such as American Electric Power, FirstEnergy Corp. and Southern Company have said that they will fall in line but that they will need more time.
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Some of the very volatile coal stocks like Alpha Natural Resources ( ANR) and Arch Coal ( ACI) have had some very dramatic, but brief rallies for nimble short-term traders.
Everybody else is very keen to get an equity stake in order to get some long-term coal supply.
According to news reports, some 30, 000 coal-mine workers in South Africa have gone on strike seeking a pay increase.
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Coal provides some 60% of its power output, and its second-cheapest source after hydropower (which is 10% of total output).
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Officials say the dam's colossal energy output will help reduce the country's dependency on coal by some 50m tonnes a year.
Coal has displaced some oil, but year by year the average American consumes more energy, not less.
China, the world's biggest coal producer by some distance, has turned to foreign suppliers over the past couple of years and is likely to rely on them even more in future.
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It produces less carbon dioxide for a unit of energy than coal or oil, so the climate will benefit to the degree that gas replaces either of those: it will mostly substitute for coal, though some oil too, especially if gas-powered trucking becomes widespread.
But some utilities are reinventing their existing coal facilities so that they can simultaneously burn biomass.
Some power plants have seen their coal piles shrink to just 15 days of burn, one-third normal levels.
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Already some electric plants have switched from coal to natural gas, and truckers are beginning to use natural gas.
Neither nuclear nor renewable energy is competitive with gas or coal unless there is some form of government support.
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