CHINA’S COST FOR “CLEAN” COAL “STAGGERING”

Clean Coal in China Said to Face ‘Staggering’ Costs
Jim Efstathiou Jr., September 4, 2009 (Bloomberg News)

"Western governments pushing China to use clean-coal technology may need to lower their expectations for the world’s largest producer of greenhouse gases.

"Costs will total as much as $400 billion over 30 years to install systems to capture carbon dioxide from power plant smokestacks in China and bury it underground, said Richard Morse, a Stanford University research associate and [co-author of The Real Drivers Of Carbon Capture And Storage In China And Implications For Climate Policy]…China has little incentive to invest because it will raise power prices and it’s unclear if wealthier nations will pick up the bill, Morse said…U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and European nations have championed carbon capture for nations including China as vital to slowing global warming while keeping coal in the energy mix. China, the biggest producer of coal, gets about 80 percent of its electricity from coal…"

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"Proposals by developed nations that seek Chinese cooperation ignore the “staggering” costs of clean-coal devices, [according to the study]…Companies developing capture systems in the U.S. include American Electric Power Co., the nation’s biggest producer of electricity from coal, and Duke Energy Corp. In Europe, Alstom SA, E.ON AG, RWE AG and Vattenfall AB are testing the devices…

"The U.S. and China are negotiating a two-way agreement to reign in emissions ahead of a meeting of 192 nations in December in Copenhagen called to produce a new global climate accord. In July meetings with government officials in China, Chu underscored the role carbon capture can play…During the trip, the two countries announced the start of a joint clean energy research center with carbon capture as a top priority…[and] pledged to cooperate on a series of clean-energy initiatives, including…energy efficiency, renewable energy and electric vehicles."

Each part of the "clean" coal process adds more expense to using coal. (click to enlarge)

"Legislation passed by the U.S. House now before the Senate would provide $10 billion over 10 years for “clean-coal” facilities…While China is developing pilot projects for carbon capture, it has balked at throwing full support behind the technology…The cost of adding the devices would undercut China’s “non-negotiable desire for cheap power to fuel economic development,” according to the report. China’s economy is forecast to quicken in the third and fourth quarters and reach an 8.3 percent rate for the year…

"China and many developing countries don’t oppose using new technology to fight global warming if wealthy nations help pay for it. In a proposal to the UN earlier this year, China and India said rich nations should contribute at least $200 billion a year to help them build wind turbines, solar plants and use other clean-energy systems…A partnership [on “clean” coal] may speed efforts to prove the technology and generate trust on climate issues…"