FERC Chairman Says We Don't Need New Coal or Nukes

[Wolverine]

HFS! I'm simply speechless....

(except for that completely unprofessional Fairy GodParents crack)

(although I CAN hear Cosmo's voice in my head saying "And it will be free and run by Fairy Magic!")

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NYT - Energy Regulatory Chief Says New Coal, Nuclear Plants May Be Unnecessary <-linky)

No new nuclear or coal plants may ever be needed in the United States, the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said today.

"We may not need any, ever," Jon Wellinghoff told reporters at a U.S. Energy Association forum.

Wellinghoff said renewables like wind, solar and biomass will provide enough energy to meet baseload capacity and future energy demands. Nuclear and coal plants are too expensive, he added.

"I think [new nuclear expansion] is kind of a theoretical question, because I don't see anybody building these things, I don't see anybody having one under construction," Wellinghoff said.

Building nuclear plants is cost-prohibitive, he said, adding that the last price he saw was more than $7,000 a kilowatt -- more expensive than solar energy. "Until costs get to some reasonable cost, I don't think anybody's going to [talk] that seriously," he said. "Coal plants are sort of in the same boat, they're not quite as expensive."

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[snickerd3]

"I think [new nuclear expansion] is kind of a theoretical question, because I don't see anybody building these things, I don't see anybody having one under construction," Wellinghoff said.

They aren't being built because they can't get the permits approved. No one wants to be the first. We had a coal plant get the construction permit only to have it revoked the next week due to lawsuits. It sat at Fed EPA Boards of Appeals for several years, never making it to the review board agenda. the power company got tired of waiting and pulled the plug on the whole project.

 

[Flyer_PE]

"I think [new nuclear expansion] is kind of a theoretical question, because I don't see anybody building these things, I don't see anybody having one under construction," Wellinghoff said.

Funny, I know they have started site prep at Vogtle and I think they have started same at South Texas. I would think the FERC chairman would be aware of that.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

NYT - Energy Regulatory Chief Says New Coal, Nuclear Plants May Be Unnecessary <-linky)"We may not need any, ever," Jon Wellinghoff told reporters at a U.S. Energy Association forum.

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Really? What a dolt you are. Lucky I'm not your boss. You'd be packing your personal belongings up right now.

I know of two nukes and one coal plant being built right here in sunny SC, *****.

 

[Supe]

Funny, I know they have started site prep at Vogtle and I think they have started same at South Texas. I would think the FERC chairman would be aware of that.

And permitting has also gone through for Jenkinsville as well.

And coal plants cost-prohibitive? What fantasy land is he living in? Our 800MW monster + scrubber is $1.8 billion, and would have only been $1.5 if they had approved two units instead of one. Our coal plants going up in Louisiana, Virginia, and Arkansas aren't much different. The only one we lost was the other one in Louisiana, and that was because they couldn't get the backing from the utility company. All permitting was complete, and they were already doing dirt work.

I really hope that article takes a lot out of context, otherwise, our FERC chairman has absolutely no clue what's going on.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

I'd put money on doesn't have a clue.

 

[Supe]

I'd put money on doesn't have a clue.

Your tax dollars already are.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Okay, I just read the whole article. What a complete *****. is he an Obama appointee, because if that's the sort of clueless 'knowledge' we can expect for the next four years, I need to start learning how to live without electricity.

 

[wilheldp_PE]

And coal plants cost-prohibitive? What fantasy land is he living in? Our 800MW monster + scrubber is $1.8 billion, and would have only been $1.5 if they had approved two units instead of one. Our coal plants going up in Louisiana, Virginia, and Arkansas aren't much different. The only one we lost was the other one in Louisiana, and that was because they couldn't get the backing from the utility company. All permitting was complete, and they were already doing dirt work.

$533/Kilowatt is pretty close to $7000/Kilowatt...you just need to round up...a lot.

 

[Supe]

I'm sorry, my mistake. It's actually 825MW.

That's less than $2200 a KW, assuming you ignore the scrubbers altogether.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

What was Wolverine's quote? "Solar and wind look like very good solutions to people who are very bad at math," or something like that.

 

[wilheldp_PE]

I'm sorry, my mistake. It's actually 825MW.

I'm a moron anyway...I divided Watts by Dollars instead of vice versa. It's actually $1818/KW, but still far less than $7000 or whatever solar/wind energy is going for today.

 

[Supe]

BTW, Jenkinsville is a proposed $9.8 billion for two AP1000 reactors. 1154 MW each puts the costs of BRAND NEW nuclear technology at $4246 per KW.

I love how in the article he also notes that you can't ramp up or down a nuclear plant. Really? And this whole time I thought those control rod thingies actually served a purpose!

Never mind the fact that this wind he's so in love with (and full of) has faaaar more control issues than nukes do. Not to mention we've got the Feinsteins that are so vehemently opposed to putting up wind farms for fear of making the barren deserts "unsightly."

BTW, who is going to be paying for the maintenance costs on these thousands upon thousands of windmills? Lord knows those bearings aren't exactly cheap...

 

[MGX]

Aren't wind power farms shut down in California due to some birds getting smacked by their turbine blades?

 

[benbo]

He's an Obama appointee, and a lawyer.

http://www.ferc.gov/about/com-mem/wellingh...inghoff-bio.asp

 

[Capt Worley PE]

^^That, sadly, isn't really all that surprising.

 

[Supe]

For having two math degrees, he sure sucks at basic algebra.

 

[benbo]

For having two math degrees, he sure sucks at basic algebra.

in law school he learned lawyer's math. 2 plus 2 only allegedly equals 4.

 

[Flyer_PE]

I love how in the article he also notes that you can't ramp up or down a nuclear plant. Really? And this whole time I thought those control rod thingies actually served a purpose!

The statement that you can't ramp a nuke is partially correct. The current nuclear fleet is no good for peeking duty. Rapid load changes cause fuel rods to fail early. I'm not sure what types of load following the new units are designed for.

 

[Wolverine]

^^^ But at 1.8 cents per KWH, why would you WANT to ramp down a nuclear unit? (presuming you can get it out)

One question I would like to ask is how many steak dinners did GE have to provide before the Chairman of FERC agreed to memorize and quote their sales brochure? Or was it something other than steaks, hmm?

I'm about one rational brain cell short of signing onto a conspiracy theory that GE, through the media outlet it owns and through it's political contributions, is fomenting a faux global warming/ CO2/carbon crisis to position itself as the administrator of a federally mandated Cap & Trade program on carbon emissions and preferred provider of renewable energy through it's wind group. Somebody noted to me that the Westinghouse AP design does seem to be winning the domestic nuke race.

Then I heard a quote the other day attributed to Harry Reid (sorry, don't know the source) that said we need a Cap & Trade program ...because the government "needs that income to pay for the healthcare plan".

HFS. Don't Panic?