In the first of a series of reports on fossil fuel plants, the Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a comprehensive report establishing baseline performance and cost estimates for pulverized coal combustion (PC), integrated gasification combined-cycle (IGCC) and natural gas combined-cycle (NGCC) power plants, all with and without carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage.

The 500-page report includes some of the most detailed publicly available data on U.S. power plants. Researchers measured the costs and performance using clean coal technology available, and the data are expected to be a “major asset” to industry and regulators as new power plants are proposed, said Julianne Klara, the project manager for the Office of Fossil Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), which put the report together.

“By outlining what the current state-of-the-art is, researchers can measure progress and pinpoint in which areas innovations are needed,” Klara said. “Utilities wishing to build fossil energy plants can also use the report as a starting point for considering the options. Regulatory agencies may also find it valuable for getting a better handle on near-term prospects.”

This first report was completed by the Office of Fossil Energy’s Clean Coal Research Development and Demonstration Program, which builds on technology advances for future coal-based power production. The program is looking at several research projects to create a portfolio of promising technologies for development, demonstration and eventual deployment.

The report, which determined plant costs and performances assuming investor-owned utility financing, highlighted the following:

Coal is expected to play a “major role in providing energy security for the United States,” the report noted. “Coal is capable of producing power in an environmentally sound and efficient manner, and the technological progress of recent years has created a remarkable new opportunity for coal. Advances in technology are making it possible to generate power from fossil fuels more efficiently and cost-effectively while, at the same time, significantly reducing the impact on the environment, including the long-term impact of fossil energy use on the earth’s climate.”

Published reports, information obtained from vendor quotes and users of the technology, and data from recently designed and built utility projects were used to compile the data, DOE said. The department noted that the study was peer-reviewed by industry experts, academia and government research and regulatory agencies.

Titled “Cost and Performance Baseline of Fossil Energy Plants, Vol. 1: Bituminous Coal and Natural Gas to Electricity,” the report may be downloaded from the DOE website at www.fossil.energy.gov/.

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