Energy secretary: Administration working hard for coal power

[kristopher]

Energy secretary: Administration working hard for coal power

Jonathan Mattise, Associated Press Updated 2:31 pm, Monday, September 12, 2016

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — President Barack Obama's energy secretary said Monday that the administration isn't waging a "war on coal" and is working to maintain coal as an important part of a low-carbon energy future.

At the Mid-Atlantic Region Energy Innovation Forum at West Virginia University, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said Congress needs to pass tax credits that could help power plants burn coal more cleanly. The credits would send a signal to utilities and investors about coal's viability for future power plant investments, Moniz said.

Especially in southern West Virginia, mines are continuing to close and miners keep losing good-paying jobs, with few other employment options available. The administration is infusing money into communities where the coal industry has withered to develop different economic opportunities, Moniz said.

"Plain and simple, 'War on Coal' is not what this administration has as a policy or has done," Moniz told The Associated Press. "It starts with — make no bones about it — we and the world are heading to a low-carbon future."...

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Energy-secretary-Administration-working-hard-for-9217711.php

[FBaggins]

1. "working to maintain coal as an important part of a low-carbon energy future"

Was Moniz able to keep a straight face while saying that?

[tonyt53]

2. Coal gasification is what he is talking about, not traditional coal burning plants. Big difference.

Coal-to-diesel is feasible right now if there were tax credits and subsidies, like those suggested. Freight, and commercial passenger all require more power than provided by natural gas. Biodiesel is not feasible in colder temperatures and will gel. By the way, my company is very involved with the alternative fuel industry, and more so in the biodiesel industry, so my support for alternatives is pretty darned strong.