Wow. This must be scaring Manchin, Tomblin, et al. They keep claiming that coal generates the majority of electricity in the US. That has not been true for at least 7 years, as the percentage had slowly declined to about 42-44 % last year.

This sudden drop is a harbinger of the future as the cost of solar and wind keeps coming down. Switching from coal to gas and back again can happen quickly with price swings in the cost of fuel, but once the infrastructure for renewables is built, there is no fuel cost. and the loss of market share for coal is permanent.

JBK

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"Chuck Wyrostok" wyro@appalight.com> 3/28/2012 7:04 PM >> ( mailto:wyro@appalight.com )

Cheap gas replaces coal at power plants By Bloomberg News

Wednesday, March 28, 2012 Power plants boosted natural gas use by 19 percent in January from a year earlier as tumbling prices prompted a switch from coal, a government report showed. Gas used in electricity generation rose to 676 billion cubic feet in January from 563.8 billion a year earlier, the Energy Department said today in its Electric Power Monthly. The increase represents 3.6 billion cubic feet a day of additional gas demand during the month. Coal use fell 22 percent to 70.6 million tons in January from a year earlier. Gas gained share in every U.S. region while coal demand declined in a month when the amount of electricity generated fell because of unseasonably warm weather, the department said in a monthly update, also released today. The department said the drop in the average spot price for natural gas below the average spot price for Appalachian coal was "the biggest reason" why gas displaced coal. Gas at the Henry Hub in Louisiana, the delivery point for New York futures, averaged $2.75 per million British thermal units in January compared with $3.17 per million Btu for Central Appalachian coal, according to department data. Electricity generation across the U.S. fell 6.4 percent in January to 340.7 million megawatt-hours from a year earlier. Gas-fired plants accounted for 27 percent of the generation while coal represented 38 percent. Natural gas futures dropped 16 percent in January to $2.503 per million British thermal on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas today slipped 1.8 cents, or 0.8 percent, to settle at $2.208, after sliding to $2.176, the lowest intraday price since February 2002. Coal futures tumbled 15 percent in January.