Trump gives clean coal to the rush, but to natural gas

July 12, 2019 by Tina Casey

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So much for clean coal. In a speech to the White House this week, President * Trump presented the American public with an overview of his administration's environmental achievements, with a focus on natural gas. However, he left a box or two without control. One of them was the American coal industry. In fact, the word "coal" does not appear at all in the official record of the White House.

Clean Coal: Dream, Klingon

Taking into account the frequency with which Trump promised to save jobs in coal during his successful campaign ** for the Oval Office, he is curious not to have taken this opportunity to boast about the clean coal programs underway. Department of Energy. After all, clean coal is supposed to create new jobs while helping to reduce carbon emissions around the world.

Never mind. Given the president's affinity for the winners, it's wise to leave the unpolluted coal on top of the list. After all, the US coal industry has continued to decline under its watch, whether it is healthy or not.

Take a look at the Energy Information Agency Outlook released on July 9:

The EIA expects US coal production to reach 684 million short tons (MMst) in 2019, down 72 MMst (9%) from 2018. US coal production will decline by 45 MMst (7%) in 2020. This expected decrease is the result of the decline in coal consumption in the electricity sector and the projected decline in demand for US coal exports.

Ouch!

Natural gas cuts the clean coal's lifeline

On balance, the commander-in-chief also took a close interest in coal in his 2019 State of the Union address, preferring to focus on the nation's booming oil and gas exports.

With coal consumption on the domestic market, coal producers are also turning to the export market. The Trump administration does not give them much help in this regard.

Instead, the Trump administration worked hand in hand to promote natural gas exports. This is particularly clear in Europe, where long-standing US policy aims to reduce the region's dependence on natural gas imported from Russia.

European coal plants are caught between two fires, but do not tell anyone, it's a secret! In fact, too bad. It's not a secret. The president's fondness for natural gas goes back to his first secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, who, as former executive director of ExxonMobil, was instrumental in promoting the shale gas revolution in Canada. United States and the resulting natural gas export boom.

The secret was also revealed during White House remarks when Trump introduced Energy Secretary Rick Perry to say a few words to him. Perry let the cat out of the bag (from the official White House transcript):

We are able to deliver liquefied natural gas to [the European Union] so that they can get away from these old dirty and burning and inefficient factories, and bring a cleaner environment to these countries.

What did he say about "old useless, dirty or burning factories?" It seems like a word or two have been omitted from the official transcript of the White House, but it seems although Perry meant that exports of liquid natural gas from the United States will help the European Union materialize its plans for "definitive exit" from coal.

Where does this leave American coal miners, their families and their communities? If you have an answer other than "hold the bag", send us a note in the comment thread.

The fossil fuel Whack-a-Mole

To be clear, there is no clean coal (or "clean" natural gas, but it's all a "can of worms"). Reducing or eliminating emissions from coal plants is just one of the environmental problems of coal. The impacts of coal mining, transportation and disposal of coal ash also need to be corrected.

Nevertheless, the soldiers of the energy department continue. The Agency's Coal Cleanliness and Carbon Management Office is still raising funds to improve coal-to-electricity conversion technology, including new research funding of $ 87 million. and development to improve coal plants earlier this spring.

This is good even if it does not solve the problem of profitability of coal for electricity production: natural gas costs less, and renewable energies start to compete with coal and natural gas prices.

The only consolation for coal right now is that it is on Trump's list of US energy industries and should not be mentioned in public. The president also did not mention the boom in the US wind industry in his speech. Three conjectures why not!

Curiously, enough, however, he shouted at the US solar industry:

..it is a very good place for solar energy. I am a supporter of solar energy. It has not been fully developed. The road ahead is long, but its future is immense.

Go understand!

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* History in development.

** Success has many fathers.

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