A joint committee of the Wyoming legislature on Wednesday heard a variety of proposals that are supposed to offer the state more revenues from its vast coal and natural gas resources while lowering greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Ultimately, the schemes could involve integration of the two fossil fuels to nuclear power.

Outlined as multi-billion-dollar concepts at this point, ideas from a variety of researchers and consultants advocated conversion plants that would turn coal and/or natural gas into clean diesel or gasoline for transportation.

While there are some projected economic advantages in terms of the returns to the state for each Btu of coal or gas subjected to still commercially unproven processes, members of the Joint Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee were skeptical about some of the ideas.

A consultant with the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and former director with a national gas-nuclear alliance, Frederick Moore, raised the question of why Wyoming isn’t pushing for conversion of its vast coal supplies into diesel? Rep. Michael Greear responded that he questioned the cost projections and the feasibility for such projects.

A number of clean coal proposals have come and gone (see Power Market Today, Jan. 28, 2008) in the past five or six years in Wyoming.

The most futuristic concept is one the Moore and the NGNP Industry Alliance have been working on for some time: use of natural gas in conjunction with nuclear reactors that would convert the gas to diesel or gasoline with what Moore told lawmakers would have virtually no carbon footprint.

He conceded that this type of reactor is still 15 to 20 years away.

The Petroleum Association of Wyoming (PAW) monitored the legislative hearing, but did not testify. PAW President Bruce Hinchey told NGI that his association “supports a natural gas and/or coal conversion plant in Wyoming.”

According to INL data, coal-to-fuel plants would cost about $8 billion and bring Wyoming about $2 billion annually for its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020; natural gas-to-fuel plants would cost about $6 billion and add about $4 billion annually to the state GDP in 2025.

©Copyright 2013Intelligence Press Inc. All rights reserved. The preceding news reportmay not be republished or redistributed, in whole or in part, in anyform, without prior written consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.