With 339 power plants retired in the United States and another 157 identified as suitable for redevelopment, there remains an opportunity for communities to reinvent themselves.
It is hard to give up the tradition of mining and operating a power plant that serves the Wasatch Front and beyond.
The reality, however, is that communities need to diversify, especially as coal reliance wavers.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, almost three-fifths of the coal mined in Utah is consumed in the state, mostly for electricity generation.
About two-fifths of Utah’s mined coal is exported to other countries or to other states, primarily to California, Nevada and Oklahoma, where the coal is used at industrial facilities.
Small amounts of coal are sent to Arkansas, Kentucky, Indiana and Oregon. Utah receives the most coal by rail from Colorado and small amounts from Wyoming for electricity generation
Despite temperatures that vary greatly with season and altitude, ranging from well above 100 degrees in the south in the summer to around 20 degrees in winter at higher elevations in the north, per capita energy consumption in Utah is below the national average. Utah ranks among the one-third of states with the lowest per capita energy consumption in the residential sector.
Reality is coming, however
When the San Juan Generating Station in New Mexico closed in 2022, about 450 jobs were lost impacting workers and the broader community.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Annual Coal Report shows that coal mining employment has declined in the past decade as coal demand has decreased. Most U.S. coal is consumed in the electric power sector and has faced increased competition from electricity generation from natural gas and renewable technologies.
The nonpartisan agency said U.S. coal mining employment decreased from a high of 92,000 employees in 2011 to 54,000 employees in 2018, with the most dramatic decrease in the Appalachian region.
Annual U.S. coal production peaked in 2008, three years before coal mining employment reached its record high.
That same year, the United States produced 1.2 billion tons of coal from 1,458 mines.
Since then, coal production has fallen and many mines have closed. In 2018, U.S. coal production was 756 million tons from 679 mines. As was the case with employment, much of coal’s production decline was concentrated in the Appalachian region. More than half of the region’s mines have closed since 2008, and production has fallen from 390 million tons in 2008 to 200 million tons in 2018.
But there is some hope in transition on the horizon
The Infinity Two project at the former Bull Run Fossil Plant in Tennessee illustrates the potential for reinvention. A fusion energy plant is being established, aiming to generate 350 megawatts, create jobs and provide retraining opportunities, all while revitalizing a community impacted by fossil fuel closures.
According to a report generated by the Idaho National Lab, there is some overlap among the retired coal power planted sites that were analyzed. The report showed that there were 24 sites that had recently retired generators and operating generators across the five regions. Most of the overlap (11 sites) was in the Midwest.
Review of currently retired coal-fired assets shows that these facilities tend to degrade quickly (demolition, land sale, land reuse, etc.) with respect to the future use of nuclear. So, the potential for backfit of advanced nuclear technologies at these sites would appear to strongly favor currently operating units.
“We’re currently working with TVA to repurpose the infrastructure at their retired Bull Run coal-fired power plant in Tennessee. It is a ready-made platform for hosting the future of energy: fusion. This repurposing of existing infrastructure is a strategy that fits well with the challenges and opportunities facing other states as well,” said Matt Miles, senior vice president of marketing and external affairs.
“Type One Energy is currently working with the nation’s largest public utility, TVA, to repurpose the land, water access, grid and switching facilities at the retired Bull Run Fossil Power Plant near Oak Ridge, Tennessee. This can help minimize costs and timeframes while avoiding the ‘not-in-my-backyard’ complaints often associated with new greenfield projects.”
Utah’s forward-looking attitude
The state already has its eyes on expanding the power grid with Gov. Spencer Cox announcing Operation Gigawatt last year.
The goal is to double the amount of energy production the state produces in a decade.
Utah has ambitious goals, but it is necessary with an expanding population that will demand more energy in the future. The Idaho National Laboratory has identified Utah as a leader when it comes to embarking on nuclear power projects and the governor’s Operation Gigawatt is looking to develop that technology in the Beehive State.