Perceptions vs. Reality

If it was simply the laws of Physics, Economics and Global Experiences of which source of Bulk Power was Best; then coal power plants would be on order by the hundreds. How can we fix the poor perceptions of coal power? Here are my thoughts.

Energy Powers Life as We Know It

America runs on energy. Energy is the Lifeblood of our economy and it is far more important than the MSM or public education teaches or explains. America has used right at 100 Quadrillion BTUs of primary energy each year for the last 25 years. Let me state this a different way, the total PRIMARY Energy used by the U.S. annually is about 100 quadrillion BTUs. Pro-rated, this is about 300 million BTUs for each U.S. citizen per year. I attempted to explain the use of about 300 million BTUs of energy per capita, each year by Americans here. The disconnect between perceptions and reality is, I think, a lack of understanding of basic physics and basic electricity generation economics. No one is an expert in everything and I freely acknowledge that there is much I do not understand about a lot of subjects. One reason such a large percentage of the public (and policymakers) became hoodwinked on renewables was, in my opinion, they were indoctrinated by green energy zealots that thought they knew a lot about solar and wind, but these zealots did not know as much about the energy and electric power business as they thought they did. Then these renewables advocates, with little understanding of bulk power generation, became influencers of elected officials who also did not understand. Thus, the blind led the blind into setting the Net Zero trap with high expectations from wind and solar. The result has been the self sabotaging of our reliable Grid. Many people I talk to, think they know a lot about power generation. Why? Because they have been indoctrinated with wind and solar propaganda. So, now we have a huge amount of the population, not only in the U.S. but all across the west, including the UK, EU, Australia and more. Many elected officials still believe that wind, solar and batteries can provide the electricity to compete with the world and still power our comfortable lives.

Energy Awareness, Thanks to the Iranians

The Iran war and closed Strait of Hormuz has helped create energy awareness with the general public. The last shock like this to ignite public interest, at least in my lifetime, to demonstrate the importance of energy in their lives was the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo. An unexpected benefit of the Iran War is that the public is forced to gain a better understanding of the availability and reliability of the conventional fuels: gasoline, Diesel, Jet fuel, natural gas, coal and nuclear. These seven forms of primary energy provide over 90% of the energy we need and use.

Keep in Mind, April is a Low Electricity Demand Month

If this was winter and the world demand for LNG soared, then U.S. natural gas prices would (LNG Demand will likely exceed supply in the winter) escalate to peaks of over $10/million BTU. Fortunately, April is a low electricity demand season. Winter will come and I predict much higher than expected natural gas prices due to the world demand for LNG. Just as a reminder, the graph below shows natural gas spot market prices compared to coal prices, from 1980 to 2024.

Coal Power and Public Perceptions

I advocate for coal because that is the fuel that I know and understand, having worked for five decades in the design, construction, startup, testing, operations, maintenance, upgrade modifications, tuning for efficiency and applying low NOx solutions to coal plants. I also advocate for natural gas and nuclear power because I believe a Balanced generation portfolio is best for the U.S.A. and each fuel has its advantages. Here is a slide from a recent presentation showing my preferred Bulk Power Generation portfolio.

In my effort to help increase energy awareness of the public, I have recently been involved in presentations to two Lifelong Learning groups, both local here in the Hilton Head Island area. For the most part, it is rewarding to share my knowledge and experiences and I have been involved with about five courses at USCB-OLLI and in addition, have given presentations to a number of civic clubs. I really appreciate the feedback from surveys that show the candid comments of the participants. Some people are very gracious and appreciative for the instructors efforts, and as an instructor, I appreciate the kind words. However, as all of us who have worked in the real world of conventional energy and electricity generation, we know that many of the public have been indoctrinated to believe that wind and solar are good, and coal (all fossil fuels for that matter) is bad. Period. This is the divided society that we live in and I wish I knew how to change it. What follows are some suggestions to help improve the average Energy IQ of voters.

Some of the Public Understand Energy and Electricity Generation, Most Do Not

My estimate of those who understand the true facts on energy and electricity generation is 5%. That is one person in twenty. Why do I say this? Because for the last twenty years I have been active in public advocacy for common sense energy policies by preparing paid ads in newspapers, presenting paid radio “Energy Fact Minutes”, presented dozens of presentations to civic clubs, taught courses at colleges and discussed with many people whom I had never met before. Thus my low estimate of 5%, although statistically unscientific, this is based on personal contact with thousands of people over the last two decades. I have confidence that it is close to being realistic.

Let’s assume that I am correct that one in twenty understands energy and that we are going to educate the other 95% on energy and electricity generation. What would be a reasonable approach? Here are three suggestions.

A Path to Better Energy & Environmental Education

I suggest a three step program to improve the public’s understanding of energy, electricity generation and the environment:

1. Electric Utilities to Replicate the 1926-1973 “Reddy Kilowatt” Program to Teach the Fundamentals of Energy and Electricity Generation

Readers born before about 1955 will remember Reddy Kilowatt, the mascot of the Investor Owned Utilities advertising campaign which began about 1926 and lasted (ironically) up to about the first Arab Oil Embargo in 1973.

Reddy Kilowatt was used to teach the basics of “Living Better Electrically”. It was also part of a magazine advertising campaign in 1950. Here is an ad by B&W which manufactured about 40% of the steam generators used by the electric utilities and the U.S. Navy. B&W has a long history of steam generator manufacturing in the U.S. since 1867, providing steam generators to Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse and then growing to be a Fortune 500 company in the 1950’s and 1960’s.

(B&W Fortune 500- #141 in 1957)

That theme of “Living Better Electrically” caught on well and none other than the Great Communicator himself was the spokesperson for General Electric on the Sunday night TV show, the General Electric Theater, 1953-1962. Ronald Reagan plugged G-E appliances but the advertising message included power generation.

Back in the early 1970’s I personally, as a CP&L startup engineer had many interactions with G-E’s Power Generation Division and they enjoyed wide public acceptance, everyone knew what G-E did to improve our quality of life and including building high quality steam turbines and generators.

I recommend that President Trump provide an incentive for all Utilities and large power generation equipment corporations to become involved with educating the public on the true facts on energy and electric power generation. Like the EEI and many municipal utilities did up to about 1974 using the “Live Better Electrically Theme” with Reddy Kilowatt as the mascot. Perhaps a new tag line, new mascot, but a replication of the public education on energy is what I am proposing.

2. Government Printing of Factual Textbooks on Energy, Electricity Generation and the Environment

The EPA and the Department of Energy, TVA, ORNL, LLNL and other government organizations together have tens of thousands of employees. This talent bank could be used to create and in some cases, simply update literature that can be reused for High Schools and Colleges to teach the true facts on energy, electricity, the environment and energy economics. The fundamentals written and illustrated in books, pamphlets and other published information on the generation of electricity by coal, gas and nuclear has not changed. Therefore, updating is all that is needed. Thermodynamics, chemistry and fluid mechanics are still the same. The few changes are higher pressures and temperatures, advanced alloys and the addition of enormously complicated Flue Gas Cleanup systems that have made clean coal, clean.

3. Encourage K-12 and University Teachers/Professors to teach the true factual physics, economics, chemistry and environmental science

Much of the existing textbooks and culture is basically biased against fossil fuels. As mentioned above with the reference to Reddy Kilowatt, back in the 1960’s, chemistry, physics, general science and environmental science was taught based on factual science. We need to return to teaching unbiased science courses to all students. Enormous amounts of literature that is factual and teaches the true laws of physics exist in the private sector. Here are some examples to help the average person (whether a High School student or an adult) understand the importance of affordable, reliable and environmentally acceptable energy:

  1.   Providing a Sustainable Million BTUs per Day/Person, May 17,  2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/05/17/providing-a-sustainable-million-btus-per-day-per-person-by-fuel-source/
  2.  A Short History of Power Generation, Part 1, 1850-1955, January 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/01/14/a-short-history-of-energy-electricity-and-how-our-high-quality-of-living-came-to-be-high-human-development-index-part-1-1850-1955/
  3. G-E TV ad from 1957, “Living Better Electrically”: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7lhp0
  4.  A Short History of Power Generation, Part 2:  https://wp.me/p5DzAo-k6
  5. Ronald Reagan, Narrator of 1962 film, “Head Start on Tomorrow” a story about the Big Rock Nuclear Power Plant in Michigan: https://archive.org/details/28762HeadStartOnTomorrow
  6.  A Short History of Power Generation, Part 3: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-ll 
  7.  A Short History of Power Generation, Part 4: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-n4
  8. Energy=Life as We Enjoy it, Aug. 22, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/08/22/energy-life-that-is-life-as-we-enjoy-it/
  9. Dr. Leen Weijers of Liberty Energy on the history of renewable energy, “Human Energy Systems, A Primer”: https://wirescrossed.substack.com/p/human-energy-systems-a-primer-1?r=1r9eeo
  10. Dick Storm 2024 on “If you want to electrify everything, you better learn about Primary Energy”: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/if-you-want-to-electrify-everything?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  11. CO2 Coalition.org, “Climate Facts”: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  12. Dr. Roy Spencer website on Climate Science: https://www.drroyspencer.com
  13. CLINTEL, Climate Scientific organization: https://clintel.org
  14. Ken Haapala’s The Science and Environmental Policy Project, SEPP, April 18, 2026:  http://www.sepp.org/twtwfiles/2026/TWTW%20April%2018%202026.pdf
  15. WUWT “Resourceful Earth” by Fred Smith and Julian Simon, April 22, 2026: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/04/22/resourceful-earth-day-fred-smith-on-julian-simon-2/
  16. Dr. Leen Weijers on Energy and Human Progress: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/leen-weijers-49a69b51_energy-power-fossilfuels-share-7453088020544540672-lkba?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  17. Dr. Lars Schernikau’s website, “Unpopular Truths” which has numerous factual articles on energy and electricity generation: https://unpopular-truth.com/blog/
  18. Dr. Leen Weijers on Human Energy and Power, a primer: https://open.substack.com/pub/wirescrossed/p/human-energy-systems-a-primer-1?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  19. Liberty Energy, “Bettering Human Lives Report” https://libertyenergy.com/esg/bettering-human-lives/
  20. 830,000 BTUs per Day/Person, Sept. 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/09/16/830000-btus-per-day-person/
  21. America Needs 100 Quadrillion BTUs of Primary Energy Each Year, May 16, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/16/back-to-basics-the-u-s-needs-100-quadrillion-btus-year-of-primary-energy/  
  22.  Pillars of Modern Civilization, Ammonia, Food, Steel, Concrete, Plastics, Aluminum, July 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/25/pillars-of-modern-civilization-all-dependent-on-energy/
  23. Kathryn Porter Blog post, Green vs. Base Load, April 2026, Outstanding overview of Dispatchable and Not-Dispatchable Power: https://watt-logic.com/2026/04/20/green-vs-baseload-the-most-suitable-energy-for-a-developing-country/

Conclusion

All of us that understand energy and electricity generation should do our part to help the other 95% of the population to understand the true facts and “How the World Really Works”, by the way, Vaclav Smil published an excellent book by that title.

I would add this and Smil’s other books to the required reading for anyone who is involved in creating energy policy, or anyone who really does want to learn “How the World Really Works”. Energy is the Lifeblood of all that we cherish, it is my hope that the public will learn more and respect the sources of energy that power our lives.

Yours truly,

Dick Storm, April 23, 2026

References and Including Documents that address CO2 and Control of Exhaust Emissions from coal power plants

For my friends that asked, “Why didn’t you discuss more of the environmental impacts of coal power, well, here is a lot of reading if you are sincerely interested in learning more.

  1. 1973 Arab Oil Embargo: https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/oil-shock-of-1973-74
  2. Roger Caiazza on New York Renewable Policy, April, 2026:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/claims-that-renewables-are-the-cheapest?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  3. USAID Scandal of abuse of funds to fund “Fake Climate Emergency”: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-usaid-scandal-continues-to-unfold?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  4. American Mind article by Dr. Richard Lindzen, Nov. 2024: https://americanmind.org/salvo/manufacturing-consensus-on-climate-change/
  5. Chinese Carbon Credits Scam investigation by German DW Magazine: https://www.dw.com/en/how-a-chinese-firm-ran-a-billion-euro-carbon-credit-scam/a-71010148
  6. Dr. Vinos interview on You Tube discussing natural Climate forces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7GdHPypAC8
  7. Heritage Foundation, “Climate Page” of Website: https://www.heritage.org/climate?mkt_tok=ODI0LU1IVC0zMDQAAAGXfz3aREvIc4jAVmPqgO1KYBASQWFmxQ-BHw-RdsKU3zea2ONFX-HMz9iWNa3xxSVod5kd_G7r5LGVHI-fRyutA0OlgmXwc1DWzLyLX5vzmHHT47o
  8. IPCC Report Proves CO2 is Not an Emergency, Substack by Rob Schneider: https://rmschne.substack.com/p/ipcc-confirms-we-are-not-in-a-climate
  9. Competitive Enterprise Institute, 2019 article and references of; “50 Years of Failed Predictions of Environmental Activists”https://cei.org/blog/wrong-again-50-years-of-failed-eco-pocalyptic-predictions/
  10. Heritage Foundation, “Climate Page”: https://www.heritage.org/climate?mkt_tok=ODI0LU1IVC0zMDQAAAGXfz3aRIOsM-V1SirqN9euVM6CrLmE7mNXZhQ4H2glt9Gd_2YoZbmYOg5fUa5b7JmJoMHRBDVsGZP1lCmb_NkcC5x399HjWdkBQj0Z1KMzBL-m-oM
  11. Firebreak article on Lawfare on a Global Scale, Jan. 9, 2025: https://www.thefirebreak.org/p/supreme-court-should-crush-the-climate?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
  12. Lars Schernikau Blog, “Unpopular Truth”: https://unpopular-truth.com/blog/
  13.  American Dream = 100 Quadrillion BTUs per Year April 7, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/04/american-dream-100-quadrillion-btus/
  14. Dick Storm Blog post, “The Impossibility of Net Zero Carbon”, October 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/13/the-stupidity-of-net-zero-carbon/
  15. MSNBC High Grade Canadian Uranium Mine, video: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2024/12/11/a-look-inside-the-worlds-highest-grade-uranium-mine.html?__source=linkedin%7Cmain%7Cverticalvideo
  16. Stephen Heins, January 2025 on Importance of Coal Power Plants: https://open.substack.com/pub/stephenheins/p/required-to-ensure-power-grid-resiliency?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false  
  17. NERC December 2024 Reliability Report: https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_Long%20Term%20Reliability%20Assessment_2024.pdf
  18. History of Energy Policy since Jimmy Carter, Real Clear History: https://www.realclearhistory.com/articles/2025/01/22/irony_and_failure_the_energy_policies_of_jimmy_carter_1086054.html
  19. Chris Bond on California Dreaming: https://open.substack.com/pub/chrisbond/p/california-dreaming?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  20. Battery Storage BESS in California, LI Post by Oscar Martin: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/oscarlmartin_californias-grid-batteries-have-turned-out-activity-7294973477780865024-EfRk?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  21. Battery Storage Chart: https://elements.visualcapitalist.com/charted-battery-capacity-by-country-2024-2030/
  22. Last 10 Years Electricity generation LI post by Mike Caravaggio, Feb. 10, 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/michael-caravaggio_last-ten-years-of-electricity-generation-activity-7291223299571818497-u6VI?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  23. BESS description by Lars Stephan using German example, LI Feb. 10, 2025: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/lars-stephan_energystorage-activity-7294633711931715585-ErXn?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  24. Rafe Champion, Australia, April 24, 2026, “Burn Coal in 
  25.  Ron Clutz interview of Chris Wright with excellent text and cartoons: https://rclutz.com/2025/02/11/us-energy-status-quo-and-outlook-sec-chris-wright/
  26. WUWT, David Mittleton on Fossil Fuels saving New England from freezing in Jan. 2025, posted Feb. 12:  https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/02/12/fossil-fuels-save-new-england-from-freezing-in-the-dark-again/
  27. Lakeland McIntosh #3 Demolition, January 2023: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GFkzRvrQ4A
  28. Power Magazine video of McIntosh Coal Plant: https://www.powermag.com/watch-implosion-topple-florida-coal-fired-plant/
  29. Scott Tinker and Mark Mills Book, “Energy for the 21st Century” Feb, 2025:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/75cce-markmillsandscotttinkerenergyforthe21stcentury.pdf
  30. EIA Report on Coal Plant Retirements, Feb. 2025: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=64604
  31. Mike Caravaggio LI Post on world Power Generation: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/michael-caravaggio_global-electricity-mix-evolution-2012-to-activity-7299561874142969856-INbX?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  32. Foreign Affairs magazine, “The Troubled Energy Transition “March- April 2025: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/troubled-energy-transition-yergin-orszag-arya
  33. IEA World Energy Prices, Dec. 2024: https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-product/energy-prices#energy-prices-and-taxes
  34. Western Electricity Markets reports: https://www.westerneim.com/Pages/About/QuarterlyBenefits.aspx
  35.  Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling Substack article summarizing the J.P. Morgan Chase 2025 Energy report: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/9-takeaways-from-the-jp-morgan-chase?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  36. Heliocentrism, March 4th , 2025, J.P. Morgan Chase Energy Report: https://assets.jpmprivatebank.com/content/dam/jpm-pb-aem/global/en/documents/eotm/heliocentrism.pdf
  37. Thomas Troszak articles on the fallacy of renewables: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335083312_Why_do_we_burn_coal_and_trees_to_make_solar_panels?

    https://www.enseccoe.org/publications/energy-highlights-no-16/
  38. Rafe Champion website, March 18, 2025: https://www.flickerpower.com/index.php/search/categories/general/list-of-briefing-notes
  39. National Mining Association, (NMA) https://mineralsmakelife.org/blog/early-action-signals-progress-us-mineral-independence-still-hangs-in-balance/
  40. EIA on Electricity Growth of AI centers: https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-releases-new-report-evaluating-increase-electricity-demand-data-centers
  41. Utility Dive, Rising Demand Could Increase Electricity Prices 19% by 2028, Electricity Growth 68% by 2050: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/us-electricity-prices-19-percent-higher-2028-ICF/727317/
  42. EIA Energy Outlook, March 11, 2025: https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/report/elec_coal_renew.php
  43. Kathryn Porter’s “Watt Logic” article on Heathrow Airport Outage, March 2025: https://watt-logic.com/2025/03/24/heathrow-airport-blackout/#comment-108225
  44. EIA Electricity Prices, March 2025: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a  
  45. https://electricityplans.com/average-electricity-bill-usage-rate-by-state/#top-10-states-for-cheapest-electricity-bills
  46. EIA Wholesale Electricity Rates, 2024: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=64284
  47. Electric Choice.com March 2025, Electric Rates in U.S.: https://www.electricchoice.com/electricity-prices-by-state/
  48. Kathryn Porter Blog post, Green vs. Base Load, April 2026, Outstanding overview of Dispatchable and Not-Dispatchable Power: https://watt-logic.com/2026/04/20/green-vs-baseload-the-most-suitable-energy-for-a-developing-country/
  49. The UnMade Energy Nation, By Pandreco on the foolish energy policies of Canada: https://open.substack.com/pub/pandreco/p/the-unmade-energy-nation?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  50. Global Energy Monitor: https://globalenergymonitor.org
  51. Energy and Some People Who Contributed to the Rise of America, March 31, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/03/31/energy-and-notable-people-who-contributed-to-the-rise-of-america/  
  52. Earth Day, Let’s Celebrate True Sustainability of Our High Quality of Life, April 22, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/04/22/earth-day-lets-celebrate-true-sustainability-and-a-continuance-of-our-high-quality-of-life/
  53.   The War on Carbon, How it Came to Be” October 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/16/the-war-on-carbon-how-it-came-to-be/
  54. “My Paid Energy Ad from 2015 and here We Go Again”, January 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/01/28/my-paid-ad-for-energy-awareness-in-2015-here-we-go-again/
  55. How Can a 6,000 MW Utility in 2030 Become a 9,000 MW Utility in 2050 and Still Meet Net Zero Carbon? Update of last year’s article, May 2, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/02/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon-an-update-on-my-electricity-provider-in-south-carolina/
  56. Coal’s Final Battle, May 18, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/20/coals-final-battle/
  57. Tom Shepstone’s Substack repost of Dick Storm commentary, May 20, 2024: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-we-the-american-people-must-win?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
  58. Visualizing 100 Quadrillion BTUs. Shouldn’t Coal Remain in our Energy Mix?” : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/07/02/visualizing-100-quadrillion-btus-of-primary-energy-coal-should-remain-in-our-energy-mix/
  59. We the People vs. The Ten Headed Swamp Monster     :  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/07/10/we-the-people-vs-net-zero-indoctrination-by-the-ten-headed-swamp-monster/
  60. The Magnificent and Indispensable Heat Engines Society Depends on: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/07/30/the-magnificent-and-indispensable-heat-engine-on-which-civil-society-depends-part-1-heat-engines-1-3-million-horsepower/ 
  61. The Magnificent and Indispensable Heat Engine, Part II, Focus on Ocean Shipping:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/08/07/the-magnificent-and-indispensable-heat-engine-on-which-civil-society-depends-part-ii-focus-on-fossil-fuels-for-ocean-shipping/
  62. The Magnificent and Indispensable Heat Engine, Part III, August 13, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/08/13/the-magnificent-and-indispensable-heat-engine-on-which-civil-society-depends-part-iii-internal-combustion-engines-up-to-110000-horsepower/
  63. The Coming Electricity Reliability Crisis and the Importance of Coal, Sept. 12, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/09/12/the-electricity-reliability-crisis-and-the-importance-of-american-coal/
  64. The Kingdom of Heaven Runs on Righteousness, The Kingdom of Earth Runs on Energy, Oct. 3, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/10/03/heaven-runs-on-righteousness-earth-runs-on-energy/
  65. Charley Reese’s Last Column, “545 vs. 300,000,000 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/11/27/charley-reeses-last-column-a-classic-commentary-written-over-twenty-years-ago/
  66. Why is Western Civilization Self Sabotaging the Primary Energy that Provides 80% of the fuel for America’s Life-Blood of Reliable Electricity, with the War on Carbon?.     : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/12/17/why-is-western-civilization-self-sabotaging-the-primary-energy-sources-that-provide-80-of-the-fuel-for-americas-life-blood-of-reliable-electricity-with-the-war-on-carbon/
  67. Musings on the Self-Sabotaging Energy Policies and a Reminder of the History of the Rise and Fall of Nations:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/01/13/musings-on-self-sabotaging-energy-policies-and-a-reminder-of-the-history-of-the-rise-and-fall-of-nations/
  68. The EPA “Endangerment Finding” and why it Needs to Go, Feb. 2, 2025: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-1ZW
  69. The SWAMP MONSTER vs. 300 Million Americans, Feb. 21, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/21/the-swamp-monster-vs-the-best-interests-of-the-united-states-of-america/
  70. Thomas J. Shepstone Substack on Dick Storm’s “Primer on How to Ensure Electricity Security (and How to Destroy It)”:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/a-primer-on-how-to-ensure-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  71. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  72. Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  73. David Siegel videos on Climate Change: https://www.cuttingthroughthenoise.net/climate-curious
  74.  The EPA Endangerment Finding Needs to Go! Thomas Shepstone publishing of Dick Storm article, March 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-epa-endangerment-finding-needs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  75. The U.S. Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis was Created by GONGO the SWAMP Monster, March 19, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/19/the-u-s-self-inflicted-electricity-generation-crisis-was-created-by-gongo-the-swamp-monster-here-is-how-to-end-it/
  76. Coal Power, It is the End Result that Matters!:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/28/coal-power-it-is-the-end-result-that-counts/
  77. My Letter to Senator Davis on Coal Power in S.C. April 1, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/03/response-to-palmetto-electric-request-to-contact-our-s-c-senators/
  78. The Solution to America’s Electricity Generation Crisis: Build New Coal Plants Now! https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/18/the-solution-to-the-nations-coming-electricity-reliability-crisis-build-new-coal-plants/
  79. Clean Energy Crisis, May 2, 2025     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/02/clean-energy-crisis-2/
  80. Thomas J. Shepstone, edited version of Clean Energy Crisis on Substack, May 3, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-clean-energy-crisis-and-why-it?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  81. Jason Hayes republishing of Why Electric rates in SC will Rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonhayes/p/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  82. Reality of Building 125 GW of New Coal Power Generation Capacity, Then and Now: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/07/the-reality-of-building-125-gw-of-new-coal-plant-generation-capacity-then-and-now/
  83. Repeal the IRA, Protect America’s Life-Blood of Energy and Electricity”:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/15/repeal-the-ira-protect-americas-lifeblood-of-energy-and-electricity-supply/
  84. Ron Stein and Dick Storm co authored article in America Out Loud, May 19, 2025: https://www.americaoutloud.news/intermittent-electricity-from-renewables-cannot-support-ai-and-data-centers/
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/27/internal-and-external-threats-to-the-u-s-electric-grid/
  85. The Reality of Returning Major Power Generation Equipment Manufacturing to the U.S. 
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/01/the-reality-of-returning-major-power-generation-equipment-manufacturing-to-the-u-s/
  86. Present DangerChina.org  Threats to the Electric Grid, Frank Gaffney, Grant Newsom, Sam Faddis, Dave Walsh and Dick Storm: https://presentdangerchina.org/webinar-inside-our-wires-the-ccp-has-penetrated-our-electric-grid-will-xi-destroy-it/
  87. Conventional Energy Including Coal is the Life-Blood of America:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/18/conventional-energy-including-coal-is-the-life-blood-of-america/
  88. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm blog post on the “Madness of the Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis” https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-madness-of-the-us-self-inflicted?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  89. Energy is the Economy and Electricity is the Life-Blood of western civilization Coal Can Make America’s Electricity Supply Great Again  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/07/30/energy-is-the-economy-electricity-is-the-life-blood-of-western-civilization-coal-can-make-americas-electricity-supply-great-again/
  90. Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/electricity-is-the-life-blood-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  91. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/    
  92. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  93. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  94. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  95. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/
  96. Reality of Building 32,000 MW of New Generation Capacity/Year. Solutions; Build New Coal Plants Now!,  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  97. Power for the U.S.A. Reality of Building 32,000 MW each year: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  98. The Importance of Coal and Thermal Performance Improvements for Heat-Rate and Resiliency: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/02/08/the-importance-of-coal-thermal-performance-considerations-for-heat-rate-and-resiliency/
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  99. Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr. on the Facts of the importance of coal power:
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  100. Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables in the Red State of S.C. Part 1:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/03/11/pros-and-cons-of-conventional-and-renewables-electricity-generation-in-the-red-state-of-south-carolina-part-1/
  101. Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables in the Red State of S.C., Part 2: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/03/17/pros-and-cons-of-renewable-and-conventional-electricity-generation-in-the-red-state-of-s-c-part-2/
  102. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm article: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-coal-must-be-part-of-the-energy?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  103. Alex Epstein, Fossil Fuels Improve Life: https://www.prageru.com/video/fossil-fuels-the-big-picture?utm_source=Iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=campaign_6613857
  104. Why are Electric Bills Increasing if more installations of cheap renewable power are being installed?: https://www.prageru.com/video/why-are-utilities-so-expensive
  105. Daily Caller, Earth Day, Celebrating Failures 2023: https://www.google.com/url?q=https://dailycaller.com/2023/04/21/opinion-earth-day-celebrates-a-half-century-legacy-of-failure-mike-mckenna/&source=gmail&ust=1682352284111000&usg=AOvVaw0rbUb-Jii4B5UE4dV41uuU
  106. WSJ on What Drives the Division of Rural and Urban Voters, April 18, 2023: https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-drives-political-polarization-geography-republicans-democrats-manufacturing-culture-elites-4256ab4c?mod=Searchresults_pos1&page=1
  107. NY Electricity Generation, “Non-Reassuring” Future, WUWT April 22, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/04/23/another-non-reassuring-report-on-new-yorks-energy-future/
  108. Dick Storm Blog, “Pillars of Modern Civilization, Energy & Food & Quality of Life”: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/25/pillars-of-modern-civilization-all-dependent-on-energy/
  109. Dick Storm Blog “Educating & Energizing the Public on the Impossibility of Powering America with Wind and Solar” March 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/03/20/educating-and-energizing-the-public-on-energy-policy-and-the-impossibility-of-powering-america-with-wind-and-solar/
  110. Canadian Pipeline Sabotage by Anarchists, Feb. 2023: https://www.vancouverislandfreedaily.com/news/trend-of-escalating-violence-coastal-gaslink-decries-pipeline-sabotage-claims-on-anarchist-site/
  111. EPRI Post on the CAISO “Duck Curve changed to Canyon Curve” of Electric Load: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7056612841755181056-SCPK?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  112. CAISO Website: https://www.caiso.com/TodaysOutlook/Pages/default.aspx
  113. Our World in Data Carbon Intensity of countries of the world: https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/carbon-intensity-electricity
  114. CFACT, “Why Net Zero Is Neither Possible Nor Desirable, the Canadian Example”: https://www.cfact.org/2021/07/12/why-net-zero-is-neither-possible-nor-desirable-the-canadian-example-part-one/ 
  115. Hackaday “New Renewables are Overwhelming the U.S. Grid” April 2023: https://hackaday.com/2023/04/17/new-renewable-energy-projects-are-overwhelming-us-grids/
  116. Dick Storm, LinkedIn Post of “America Has No Energy Policy”, ENERUM Presentation, August 2022:  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/richard-storm-00557810_storm-presentation-to-columbus-energy-forum-ugcPost-7056884646923440128-ZQLR?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  117. Harvard Wind Study shows Greater Environmental Impact & Land Requirements than Originally Thought for Renewables: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2018/10/large-scale-wind-power-has-its-down-side/
  118. Solar and Wind Turbine Materials Requirements, from LinkedIn post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/arihashahi_energy-renewableenergy-renewableenergy-activity-7053119817586778112-4XZy?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  119. Dick Storm Blog, Santee-Cooper IRP Comments: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/04/27/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon/
  120. EIA April Energy Outlook Charts and Data, April, 2023: https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/
  121. Axios Charlotte, Earth Day Edition, April 24, 2023: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ogbl#search/Earth+Day+Axios/FMfcgzGsmNMhrHGNRxvxsFmCxtGKSFlb
  122. WUWT Military Urged to go Total Electric by Biden-Granholm, April 29, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/04/29/joe-biden-wants-every-us-military-vehicle-to-be-climate-friendly/
  123. The Right Stuff Climate Stuff, Tom Moser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-gHWcrCK7w
  124. Why Batteries Cannot Backup solar and Wind generation: https://stopthesethings.com/2023/04/29/grand-delusion-why-battery-storage-cant-fix-wind-solars-intermittency-problem/
  125. Blackrock and U.N. start of “ESG” Investing Policies: https://unherd.com/2023/03/blackrocks-tyrannical-esg-agenda/
  126. EIA 2011 Report on Energy, Good reference 1900-2011: https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/annual/pdf/aer.pdf
  127. NREL Report on Electrification to 2050: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy18osti/72096.pdf
  128. UN Climate News: https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/10/1129892?_gl=1*1nhukiq*_ga*MTM1NjA2Njg4OS4xNjgyODY3NDQ5*_ga_TK9BQL5X7Z*MTY4Mjg2NzQ0OS4xLjEuMTY4Mjg2NzYzOS4wLjAuMA.. 
  129. UN-Climate page: https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement#:~:text=The%20Paris%20Agreement%20is%20a,France%2C%20on%2012%20December%202015
  130. Our World in Data Charts of CO2: https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-greenhouse-gas-emissions
  131. IEA Executive Summary 2022 World Energy Outlook: https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2022/executive-summary
  132. EPA Air Quality, National Summary: https://www.epa.gov/air-trends/air-quality-national-summary
  133. Yale Report on Deaths from “Blackouts” : https://environment-review.yale.edu/true-cost-power-outages-0
  134. Sutton Plant Implosion video, 2016: https://youtu.be/miSapiaJTpM
  135. Boardman Plant Implosion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0azahkPUVA
  136. 60 Minutes program on Vulnerability of Electric Grid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65siHaUPsRM
  137. EIA October 2022 Energy Outlook: https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2022-11/05%20October%2027%20-%20EIA%20Annual%20Energy%20Outlook%202022.pdf
  138. EEI EV’s in market 2030: https://www.eei.org/News/news/All/eei-projects-26-million-electric-vehicles-will-be-on-us-roads-in-2030
  139. EIA NZE 2050 Report: https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2022-06/IEA%2C%20Net%20Zero%20by%202050_1.pdf
  140. WUWT Energy Crisis creates a Food production crisis due to fertilizer shortages: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/05/11/entire-global-food-supply-at-risk-from-disastrous-response-to-so-called-nitrogen-crisis/
  141. ELECTREK article on Chinese EV’s to dominate market: https://electrek.co/2023/05/11/chinas-ev-surge-threatens-legacy-automakers-market-dominance/
  142. Dr. Judith Curry Review of CLINTEL report analyzing IPCC-AR6: https://judithcurry.com/2023/05/13/clintels-critical-evaluation-of-the-ipcc-ar6/ 
  143. CLINTEL website: https://clintel.org
  144. Capital Research Center, Green Watch: https://capitalresearch.org/category/green-watch/
  145. Biggest engine in the world: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiwMJe9_vcQ
  146. LLNL Energy Flow Chart: https://flowcharts.llnl.gov/sites/flowcharts/files/2022-04/Energy_2021_United-States_0.png
  147. Dick Storm Blog, May 16, 2023, U.S. Needs 100 Quads/year: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/16/back-to-basics-the-u-s-needs-100-quadrillion-btus-year-of-primary-energy/
  148. Heritage.org interview, Keeping the Lights on,  event page is here https://www.heritage.org/energy-economics/event/keeping-the-lights-america-looking-ahead-power-grid-reliability and I believe the recorded video will be posted soon
  149. Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant History, started in 1958: https://jackdevanney.substack.com/p/the-rise-and-fall-of-yankee-rowe?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
  150. Energy Markets Time to complete new connections to Grid, Berkely Lab: https://emp.lbl.gov/queues
  151. Washington Post article on Grid connections: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/05/18/permitting-reform-clean-energy-debt-ceiling/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202023-05-18%20Utility%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:50602%5D
  152. Copied link of post of NERC Summer Reserves Warning May 18, 2023: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/richard-storm-00557810_two-thirds-of-north-america-is-at-risk-of-activity-7064912009884041216-DNHX?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  153. Ron Clutz Blog, including You Tube of Jimmy Dore explanation of Google Biasing Propaganda on “Climate Change”: https://rclutz.com/2023/05/22/google-screens-your-climate-info/#like-31222
  154. WUWT on Smearing Journalists that do not agree with “Woke & UN-IPCC Manmade Global Warming narrative: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/05/23/regime-climate-censorship-enforcer-newsguard-the-tragic-case-of-zack-fishman/
  155. Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, 60 years later, Fails Test of Time, WUWT: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/05/17/carsons-silent-spring-fails-test-of-time-new-york-times-verdict-in-2007/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=carsons-silent-spring-fails-test-of-time-new-york-times-verdict-in-2007
  156. WUWT-Global Surface Temperature comparison of MSM and science based trend by data: https://wattsupwiththat.com/uah-version-6/
  157. Forbes article on Environmental Groups Harming the Poor, https://www.forbes.com/sites/tilakdoshi/2023/05/23/environmental-ngos-in-the-global-south-saviors-of-humanity-or-predatory-special-interests/?sh=78c19c9e59aa
  158. NextEra Energy web site: https://www.nexteraenergy.com
  159. Congressional Research Service State of Electric Utilities, 1973-1984: https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/99th-congress-1985-1986/reports/doc10b-entire_1.pdf
  160. Earth Overshoot.org on world population: https://www.overshootday.org/newsroom/country-overshoot-days/
  161. https://www.overshootday.org/newsroom/country-overshoot-days/
  162. Paul Harvey, 1964, “If I Was the Devil” You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9NoQHgjM_0
  163. Mining of Rare Earth Minerals has a Dirty Little Secret, by FEE, May 2023:  https://fee.org/articles/green-energy-has-a-dirty-secret/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2020_FEEDaily
  164. EPA opposes Petrochemical Industries in Louisiana using Taxpayer funds, Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidblackmon/2023/05/25/how-epa-funds-the-petrochemical-industrys-opposition/?sh=7c39025a7176
  165.  Rigzone-“Will We Hit Net Zero Carbon by 2050” May 30, 2023: https://www.rigzone.com/news/will_the_world_hit_net_zero_by_2050-30-may-2023-172906-article/?utm_campaign=DAILY_2023_05_30&utm_source=GLOBAL_ENG&utm_medium=EM_NW_F1
  166. Germany Loses Trust in Automotive Manufacturing of the Future, June 1, 2023: https://www.euractiv.com/section/transport/news/germany-loses-trust-in-its-future-as-the-worlds-automotive- leader/?utm_source=piano&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=9717&pnespid=vONsDj0fa6YB3fWaozvrE4vTu0KuBJd4J.jlxrB69EVmIi05WkT6eEKuNWblScX1gKHYP2iqCw 
  167. The Decline of the American Empire, By “The Burning Platform” June 2023 : https://www.theburningplatform.com/2023/05/31/fall-of-american-empire-and-descent-into-a-new-dark-ages/
  168. Master Resource, Free Markets Energy Blog: https://www.masterresource.org/reading-list/
  169. Ed Ireland on China and EV’s June, 5, 2023: https://edireland.substack.com/p/electric-vehicle-boom-may-force-china?r=kv1a9&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
  170. Top Ten Energy Companies by Energy Digital : https://energydigital.com/articles/top-10-energy-companies-by-market-cap
  171. The Federal War on your Life-Style, WUWT, June 8, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/06/07/the-federal-war-against-your-lifestyle/
  172. Robert Bryce, No Uranium for Nuclear, June 9, 2023: https://robertbryce.substack.com/p/no-u
  173. Ken Braun on Leftist Organizations Funding anti Fossil Fuels: https://capitalresearch.org/article/nuclear-power-hating-hypocrites-part-1/
  174. World Economic Forum Doesn’t Even Hide their Intent to Create Decline of the Western World: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ogbl#inbox/FMfcgzGsnBbvwcrFHbjLsNkzqTMKjvCP
  175. WEF Urban Mobility Paper, May 2023: https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_The_Urban_Mobility_Scorecard_Tool_2023.pdf?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email 
  176. David Blackmon Energy Absurdities: https://blackmon.substack.com/?utm_source=cross-post&utm_campaign=434821&utm_medium=email
  177. David Blackmon, Democrats Patiently Wait for Power Positions: https://blackmon.substack.com/p/the-energy-absurdity-of-the-week-031
  178. E&E News Democrats into Power Positions, May 2023: https://www.eenews.net/articles/how-green-new-dealers-became-washington-power-players/
  179. John Kerry Speech on “The Great Reset” New American, Nov. 2020: https://thenewamerican.com/john-kerry-talks-great-reset-at-world-economic-forum/
  180. The Great Reset movement toward World Totalitarianism, Hillsdale College Lecture by Michael Rectenwald: https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/what-is-the-great-reset/
  181. John Kerry Targets Agriculture at WEF Speech, May 2023, Fox News: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/john-kerry-targets-agriculture-part-climate-crusade
  182. WEF Limiting Private Cars:  https://www.internationalfreepress.com/2023/06/wef-document-calls-for-limiting-private.html
  183. WEF on Degrowth, June 2022: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/06/what-is-degrowth-economics-climate-change/
  184. WEF Calls to reduce vehicles by eliminating ownership, Aug. 2022: https://www.climatedepot.com/2022/08/01/world-economic-forum-calls-to-reduce-private-vehicles-by-eliminating-ownership/
  185. Sierra Club and Abortion Alignment, On the Issues, : https://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Sierra_Club_Abortion.htm
  186. U.N., Planned Parenthood and Sierra Club Alignment Sept. 2015: https://unfoundation.org/media/un-foundation-planned-parenthood-federation-of-america-sierra-club-announce-winners-of-first-ever-why-we-care-youth-emerging-leaders-for-reproductive-rights-contest/
  187. Sierra Club & NRDC Environmental Groups Urge Support for Affordable Care Act and Reproductive Rights, March 2017: https://content.sierraclub.org/press-releases/2017/03/environmental-groups-urge-support-affordable-care-act-and-planned-parenthood
  188. Sierra Club & Planned Parenthood Join Conferences to Explain Sex and the Environment. Nov. 2007, Catholic News Agency, : https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/11091/sierra-club-joins-planned-parenthood-to-offer-conferences-on-sex-and-the-environment
  189. Professor Michael Kelly, UK, June 2017: https://www.soci.org/news/general-news/professor-michael-kelly-lecture
  190. FERC Energy Regulator States, “Power Grid is Facing Dire Consequences Due to Coal & Gas Retirements”, “WUWT June 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/06/13/federal-energy-regulatory-commissioner-mark-christie-power-grid-is-facing-dire-consequences-due-to-coal-gas-retirements/
  191. Donations to DeSantis Election Campaign by Duke and NextEra Utilities, June 2023: https://jacobin.com/2023/03/ron-desantis-florida-utility-companies-power-shutoffs-republican-party
  192. Electrical Disconnection by Utilities, June 2023 : https://bailout.cdn.prismic.io/bailout/49a01c18-5c8d-4821-ae22-5ee09a089cba_Powerless+in+the+US_Report.pdf?ref=the-lever
  193. Dark Money from Utilities to Elected Officials or Candidates, The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/15/us-power-companies-political-lobbying-donations-nonprofit
  194. Electric Power Company Donations; https://www.energyandpolicy.org/campaign-finance-reports-reveal-utility-industry-contributions/
  195. Daily Signal list of companies that donate to Planned Parenthood, Aug. 2015: https://www.dailysignal.com/2015/08/19/more-companies-that-have-donated-to-planned-parenthood/  and
  196. https://www.dailysignal.com/2015/07/21/meet-the-41-companies-that-donate-directly-to-planned-parenthood/
  197. More companies that donate to PP: https://www.partnersforethicalcare.com/planned-parenthood-donors
  198. JTF donations of 25 million to Democrats: https://jtf.org/follow-the-money-planned-parenthood-donated-25m-to-democrats-since-2000/
  199. INTEL and others that promote Zero Population Growth and Planned Parenthood: https://www.christianpost.com/voices/meet-the-biggest-planned-parenthood-supporter-in-corporate-america.html
  200. Open Secrets Donations to Planned Parenthood, 2022: https://www.opensecrets.org/outside-spending/detail/2022?cmte=Planned+Parenthood&tab=donors
  201. AMAC Article on Planned Parenthood Funding, 2017, over 962,000 abortions and $1.3 Billion in “Donations”: https://amac.us/may-not-support-planned-parenthoodbut-favorite-companies/
  202. 2nd Vote website of companies that contribute $1.3 Billion to Planned Parenthood, 2017: https://www.2ndvote.com/planned-parenthood/
  203. John Kerry on BBC: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-57135506
  204. John Kerry coordination with Green Groups, Fox News: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/republicans-probe-john-kerrys-ties-eco-groups-efforts-shield-oversight
  205. Robert Bryce Substack on the “Iron Law of Electricity” Increases in coal use around the world, June 17, 2023: https://robertbryce.substack.com/p/the-iron-law-of-electricity-strikes
  206. California Globe, California’s Electricity Policy Failure, June 18, 2023: https://californiaglobe-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/californiaglobe.com/articles/the-failure-of-california-electricity-policy-in-one-image/amp/
  207. World Bank report, June, 2023, De-Tx Development, Mis-Use of Fertilizers & DeGrowth:  https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/61d04aca-1b95-4c06-8199-3c4a423cb7fe/content?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
  208. NJ ROI (Return On Info) : https://www.roi-nj.com/2023/05/17/roi-influencers/energy-utilities-roi-influencers/roi-nj-presents-the-roi-influencers-energy-and-utilities/?utm_source=ROI-NJ+MAIN+Newsletter+List+%282%2F4%2F19%29&utm_campaign=ee9cbf68df-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_06_20_02_53&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-ee9cbf68df-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D
  209. Capital Research Video on Green Ties to China: https://capitalresearch.org/article/how-china-designed-american-environmental-policy/
  210. China Influence of U.S.  Green Groups and U.S. Environmental Policy, Capital Research Center video:  https://capitalresearch.org/article/how-china-designed-american-environmental-policy/    
  211. Capital Research Center on Teen Vogue Influence of young female voters on Democrat policies: https://capitalresearch.org/article/teen-vogue-training-young-female-leftists/
  212. Good Energy News Reference: https://oilprice.com
  213. German Industry Shutting Down and Moving, due to high energy process, CNBC June 21, 2023 : https://www-cnbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/06/21/high-german-energy-prices-are-seeing-some-companies-relocate-bdi.html
  214. EIA Notice of Change in Calculating/Reporting Solar Primary Energy to use 3412 Btus/kWh, June 23, 2023: https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/monthly/change/
  215. WUWT Global Surface Temperature Chart 1880-2022: https://wattsupwiththat.com/uah-version-6/
  216. “Why Climate Change is Not an Emergency”, CO2 Coalition Presentations, May 27, 2023: https://co2coalition.org/media/why-climate-change-is-not-an-emergency/  
  217. Time Magazine, “The Modern World Can’t Exist Without These Four Ingredients. They All Require Fossil Fuels”, Vaclav Smil May 2022: https://time.com/6175734/reliance-on-fossil-fuels/
  218. ERCOT Dashboard: https://www.ercot.com
  219. EU Report and long list of references on the “DeIndustrialization of Europe” by forcing wind power on the citizens: 
    https://us1-campaign–archive-com.translate.goog/?u=a15449610a1df64c85f7499e1&id=5b33ebcfdc&e=59342c48f8&_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=auto
  220. Causes of Blackouts in Europe, excellent paper, Jan. 2022: https://www-science–climat–energie-be.translate.goog/2022/01/07/les-blackouts-leurs-causes-et-consequences-economiques/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=auto
  221. Energy Institute Resources for Data and Statistics, June 2023: https://www.energyinst.org/statistical-review/resources-and-data-downloads
  222. NERC Summer Reliability Report, May 2023: https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_SRA_2023.pdf
  223. Balancing Energy Security, Affordability, the Economy, Decarbonization and Security, Energy Policy Research Foundation: https://assets.realclear.com/files/2023/06/2210_eprinc_balancing_energy_security_affordability_and_decarbonization.pdf
  224. The Rise and Fall of the American Grid, American Affairs Journal, Fall, 2022: https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2022/08/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-american-electrical-grid/
  225. WSJ article on $400 Billion Loans for Green Energy: https://www.wsj.com/articles/green-energy-climate-loans-49fda73b?mod=hp_lead_pos7
  226. WSJ Small towns benefit in green IRA spending: https://www.wsj.com/articles/climate-legislation-inflation-reduction-act-small-towns-eb0ce798?mod=article_inline
  227. WUWT on the “Myth of Replacing Fossil Fuels”: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/03/the-myth-of-replacing-fossil-fuels/
  228. Brattle Group Podcast: https://energymarketspodcast.buzzsprout.com/1568110/13142849
  229. Nuclear Power in the 1960’s. Great info: https://whatisnuclear.com/news/2023-07-03-film-about-pm1-microreactor-in-wyoming.html
  230. National Center for Education Statistics, Degrees in 2021: https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=37and https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cta
  231. America’s Power, Editorial on the Importance of Coal, July 10, 2023: https://americaspower.org/the-need-for-sensible-epa-rules/
  232. America’s Power Key Takeaways of Winter Storm Elliott Report on the importance of coal: https://americaspower.org/new-report-evaluates-the-performance-of-electricity-resources-during-storm-elliott/
  233. Net Zero Reality Coalition: https://www.cfact.org/netzerorealitycoalition/
  234. WUWT On National Academy of Engineering Summer Report on decarbonization, July 11, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/11/national-academies-climate-junk-summit-7-11-7-12-is-open-to-all/
  235. EPA Regulations will Destroy the American Power Grid, Ed Ireland Substack: https://edireland.substack.com/p/epa-proposes-anti-fossil-fuel-regulations?r=kv1a9&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
  236. Energy & Economic Prosperity of Various Countries of the world, There are no Rich Countries that do not Manufacture Products: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/richard-storm-00557810_electricity-income-activity-7084913097718562816-foX7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  237. Nuclear in the 1960’s. Our predecessors got lots of things done: 
    https://whatisnuclear.com/news/2023-07-03-film-about-pm1-microreactor-in-wyoming.html
  238. Robert Bryce Substack on “Carbon Myopia” and the need of 3 Billion people on the planet that need to be lifted from poverty: https://robertbryce.substack.com/p/carbon-myopia/comments
  239. I, Pencil, by Foundation for Economic Education, 1958: https://fee.org/resources/i-pencil/
  240. Rivotto Clean Energy Now: https://rivotto.webflow.io 
  241. Clintel Report, “There is No Climate Emergency” : https://clintel.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/WCD-version-06272215121.pdf?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
  242. Daily Skeptic on John Clauser Slamming the Corrupt Science used to create a “Climate Emergency” : https://dailysceptic.org/2023/07/14/nobel-physics-laureate-2022-slams-climate-emergency-narrative-as-dangerous-corruption-of-science/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
  243. PA Pundits on PJM and Renewables, July 20, 2023: https://papundits.wordpress.com/2023/07/18/renewables-versus-the-grid-at-pjm/#like-256253
  244. WUWT Manipulative Weather Reporting in Europe, July 20, 2023:  https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/19/europes-48c-horror-that-never-wasesa-media-sharply-criticized-for-manipulative-reporting/ 
  245. Steve Milloy, Junk Science, July 20, 2023: https://twitter.com/JunkScience/status/1681843663276593159/photo/2
  246. Biased reporting of Texas weather reports, blaming “Climate Change” by WA PO called out by WUWT post, June 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/06/25/no-wapo-a-texas-heat-wave-has-nothing-to-do-with-global-climate-change/
  247. Mises Institute, Wind and Solar are Not Cheaper than Gas & Coal, July 18, 2023: https://mises.org/wire/wind-and-solar-are-not-cheaper-coal-and-oil
  248. WUWT from Roy Spencer’s Blog, “yes, Virginia, There is a Climate Crisis” July 19, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/19/yes-virginia-there-is-a-climate-crisis/ 
  249. Emma Jo Morris Testimony to Congress on Government collusion of Federal Agencies to cover-up Hunter Biden Laptop from Hell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CIgfJLELUA
  250. The Hill-Codified New Green Deal links, July 20, 2023: https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4108506-trump-says-he-would-end-green-new-deal-atrocities-on-first-day-back-in-white-house/?email=84d4bddd0c71e4df29ecbc7fd21bc23942fd3d7b&emaila=165216f6fa37b0526d6bbc3b773b5c0c&emailb=462db23387b0b81da7e473e3205ce8df130a90dc5cc967a607e92936346e33c3&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=MR%207/21
  251. American Coal Council, Coal Blog: http://www.coalblog.org
  252. WUWT The Cost to Wildlife Due to Green Regulations, July 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/22/retired-officer-exposes-how-environmental-policies-hurt-the-environment-john-baker/
  253. Dick Storm LinkedIn post, 2008 presentation to the American Coal Council, “Enhancing the Perception of Coal”: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7088732708389998592?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  254. WUWT What our Climate Overlords Fail to Understand about Fossil Fuels & Energy: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/07/16/david-blackmon-heres-what-our-climate-overlords-fail-to-understand-about-fossil-fuels/
  255. David Blackmon, Energy Absurdities, Carbon Fascism, Where it Came From” July 2023: https://blackmon.substack.com/cp/135331657
  256. Reuters on Refinery Capacity, Jan. 18, 2023: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/heavy-slate-us-oil-refinery-overhauls-crimp-fuel-output-2023-01-18/
  257.  EIA Refinery Capacity Report, Capacity of U.S. Refining is declining: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=52939#
  258. EIA report on Refinery closures: https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/aeo/narrative/production/sub-topic-03.php#:~:text=Between%202020%20and%202021%2C%20six,Marathon)%20refinery%20in%20Martinez%2C%20California
  259. Reuters list of Coal Plants scheduled for or already Shut Down: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-coal-fired-power-plants-scheduled-shut-2021-10-28/
  260. Wikipedia list of coal plants shut down: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_decommissioned_coal-fired_power_stations_in_the_United_States
  261. Republican Senators Capito (WVA) and Barrasso (WY) submit Bill to keep coal plants running, overturn EPA Rule, Fox News, June 2023: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/republicans-overturn-bidens-power-plant-crackdown
  262. Sen. Capito Website: https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/in-the-news/top-republicans-raise-alarm-on-bidens-power-plant-regs-growing-risks-to-electric-reliability
  263. Governing.com on threats of electricity reliability, June 2023: https://www.governing.com/infrastructure/experts-warn-lack-of-reliable-renewables-puts-grid-at-risk#:~:text=The%20retirement%20of%20fossil%20fuel%20electricity%20production%20and%20the%20lack,from%20a%20loss%20of%20power
  264. American Energy Alliance, 100 Ways the Democrats and Biden have Made the U.S. Less Energy Secure, May 2022: https://www.americanenergyalliance.org/2022/05/100-ways-biden-and-the-democrats-have-made-it-harder-to-produce-oil-gas/
  265. Environmental Progress Report on Carbon Intensity of Solar Panels including Chinese Manufacturing use of coal power to manufacture them, July 2023: https://environmentalprogress.org/big-news/2023/7/3/solar-panels-are-more-carbon-intensive-than-experts-will-admit
  266. Census Bureau Report of Difficulty paying Electricity Bills in U.S.:  https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/hhp/#/?measures=ENERGYBILL
  267. USA Today November 2020 Map of Red & Blue County Election Results: https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/graphics/2020/11/10/election-maps-2020-america-county-results-more-voters/6226197002/
  268. Judith Curry Blog on Heat Waves, July 15, 2023: https://judithcurry.com/2021/07/15/heat-waves-and-hot-air/
  269. Dr. Patrick Moore on the Historical Temperatures of Earth for 65 million years, Tweet: https://twitter.com/EcoSenseNow/status/1684564828453756928/photo/1
  270. South Africa Minister Questions Green Agenda, July 2023: https://www.zawya.com/en/economy/africa/south-africa-minister-questions-85bln-climate-deal-report-al1aabqc
  271. Breakthrough Institute Report on Renewables Not being Practical, July 2023: https://thebreakthrough.org/issues/energy/what-the-100-renewables-literature-gets-wrong
  272. We should learn from the wind turbine mistakes of Europe, Stop These Things Blog, July 2023: https://stopthesethings.com/2023/07/23/dont-follow-the-leader-learning-from-europes-renewable-energy-disaster/
  273. Patrick Moore Tweet on temperature rise and CO2, July 28, 2023: https://twitter.com/EcoSenseNow/status/1684569534085349379?s=20
  274. Alex Epstein Talking Points Post on Substack on MSM Hot Weather Distortions, July 28, 2023:  https://alexepstein.substack.com/?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=pub&utm_medium=web
  275. 1973 Oil Embargo by Federal Reserve: https://www.federalreservehistory.org/essays/oil-shock-of-1973-74
  276. European Scientist, on Agriculture and Energy, by Dr. Samuele Furfari, July 2023: https://www.europeanscientist.com/en/
    And https://www.europeanscientist.com/en/features/agriculture-who-wants-to-replace-22-billion-human-equivalents/
  277. CO2 Coalition, “Why CO2 is NOT a Climate Emergency”, : https://co2coalition.org/media/why-climate-change-is-not-an-emergency/
  278. NASA video and report on massive water vapor produced by Tonga Volcano in Jan. 2022 (Report August 2022): https://climate.nasa.gov/news/3204/tonga-eruption-blasted-unprecedented-amount-of-water-into-stratosphere/
  279. You Tube report on Renewables from LI: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7079754745808072704?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  280. Harold Hamm sees much more Oil and Gas in our future, Bloomberg, July 31, 2023: https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/billionaire-harold-hamm-sees-a-great-oil-fortune-still-untapped-in-us-shale-1.1952915
  281. NCC Report on EOR in Ohio Valley using CCS from coal plants: https://www.nationalcoalcouncil.org/reports/NCC-Full-Report-June-2012.pdf
  282. Imprimis Essay by Bjorn Lomborg on Thinking Smartly About Climate Change, April 2023: https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/thinking-smartly-about-climate-change/
  283. Master Resource Blog on Energy, Electricity Regulation and Environment: https://www.masterresource.org/giberson-michael/classical-liberalism-electricity-not-complicated/#comment-401014
  284. CO2 Coalition Fact Page: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  285. PA Pundits War on Fossil Fuels Empowers China: https://www.cfact.org/2023/08/03/the-war-on-fossil-fuels-empowers-china/
  286. Coal Hard Truths:  https://thecoalhardtruth.com/myths-about-coal-renewable-energy/
  287. Count on Coal, ACC Blog: https://www.countoncoal.org/category/blog/
  288. Dick Storm, Liberty Univ. CEO Summit, panel notes, Sept. 2024: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7266497381574098944?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  289. Coal Hard Truth on the Myths of Coal & Renewable Energy: https://thecoalhardtruth.com/myths-about-coal-renewable-energy/
  290. American Coal Ash Association:  https://acaa-usa.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/22-ACAA-Brochure_FINAL.pdf
  291. Other scientific studies of note: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted risk analysis of the use of various coal combustion products in concrete, wallboard, and agriculture and found them all to be safe:
    https://acaa-usa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ccr_bu_eval.pdf
  292. Stossel & Curry You Tube Interview, August 2023: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVi01vJ4nxM
  293. Mike O’ Gorman, Panamax Post Scoopit: https://www.scoop.it/topic/panamaxpost
  294. Steam Turbine Documentary by Smithsonian Magazine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaRc0oHBk5M
    Steam Turbine video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwQxVKs_NnA
  295. Liberty Energy Report, “Bettering Human Lives”, Aug. 2022: https://www.libertyenergy.com/betteringhumanlivesv2/
  296. World Nuclear Heavy Pressure Vessel Manuf.: https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/nuclear-fuel-cycle/nuclear-power-reactors/heavy-manufacturing-of-power-plants.aspx
  297. Climate Depot: https://www.climatedepot.com
  298. Paul Harvey, 1964 “If I Were the Devil” You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9NoQHgjM_0
  299. C-E Nuclear Power PPT’s: https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&sa=X&sca_esv=555979541&rls=en&cs=0&q=Combustion+engineering+nuclear+plants+ppt&tbm=isch&source=univ&fir=gE2dCejq_ZUJOM%252C-x1zEbiQe5xKAM%252C_%253BziIA5UXLtv888M%252CnRjm5uOw-lVjGM%252C_%253B_9hZdEMvLEDIwM%252CyjRhfW7RxQoBkM%252C_%253BogcYPhdiWtP2iM%252CkdTHstzg6EFjxM%252C_%253BC69pvQ0EdQEbFM%252Cj3GkYq9x335aHM%252C_%253B80XZl21eUjYUuM%252CUxpyl4H1GOm5kM%252C_%253BoTJMzr1q8v2jaM%252CtEezENYqvvBujM%252C_%253B63XFzUPlN1BbDM%252CCXqGmaln30X4wM%252C_%253BaO6z-tsQjnaPcM%252C_1q5rUfwKsoqzM%252C_%253BXQ6USqJX53-NbM%252CNy9QSgfH_dGccM%252C_&usg=AI4_-kTBiJcyQrfPtDrFODWq1NAjN53zWw&ved=2ahUKEwix5b31stWAAxX3mWoFHaYWAMwQ7Al6BAhLEFc&biw=1920&bih=1000&dpr=1
  300. World Nuclear Heavy Manufacturing of Nuclear Pressure Vessels: https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/nuclear-fuel-cycle/nuclear-power-reactors/heavy-manufacturing-of-power-plants.aspx
  301. American Experiment.org Resources: https://www.americanexperiment.org/reports/big-blow-offshore-wind-powers-devastating-costs-and-impacts-on-north-carolina
  302. World Nuclear Symposium Presentations from Don: https://epri.app.box.com/s/8uu46f5hoo3x9loni23qvvmdopz7eg62
  303. Krishnadev LI Post on CCP Nuclear, Aug. 13, 2023: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/krishna81_chinas-small-nuclear-reactor-completes-core-activity-7096484093307088896-iS_k?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  304. If I Wanted America to Fail” You Tube, 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ-4gnNz0vc
  305. Congress CSPAN support of Rio Conference Oct. 2, 1992: https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4362236/user-clip-nancy-pelosi-pushes-agenda-21-dispite-fact-haarp-culprit-global-warming
  306. Wikileaks releases John Podesta emails on uranium deal with Russians: https://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/299904-wikileaks-releases-alleged-podesta-emails/
  307. Politico, What you need to know about Clintons and the Uranium 1 Deal: https://www.politico.com/story/2017/11/14/hillary-clinton-uranium-one-deal-russia-explainer-244895
  308. Why Hillary Clinton Sold America’s Uranium: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-hillary-clinton-sold-americas-uranium-2016-10-26
  309. Forbes on Clinton Uranium One Deal: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2018/12/13/russian-uranium-one-deal-and-hillary-clinton-in-the-news-again/?sh=d5bb8ad526d5
  310. Fox News on Uranium One Deal with Russians: https://docs.house.gov/meetings/II/II06/20190625/109694/HHRG-116-II06-20190625-SD004.pdf
  311. New American article on John Podesta’s involvement in lobbying for Uranium One Deal with Russia: https://thenewamerican.com/us/podesta-group-failed-to-register-as-agent-for-russian-company/?print=pdf
  312. Coal 101 You Tube educational: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iN6LvH_4Q3g
  313. Dick Storm, POWER Magazine Commentary, Oct. 2021, “Thermal Power Plants are Still #1”: https://www.powermag.com/blog/all-fuels-are-important-but-thermal-power-generation-is-still-number-1/
  314. Epoch Times article on top Scientists Stating CO2 is not a threat: https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/two-princeton-mit-scientists-say-epa-climate-regulations-based-on-a-hoax-5460699?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport&src_src=partner&src_cmp=BonginoReport
  315. Neutron Bytes, Advanced Nuclear News:    https://neutronbytes.com/advanced-reactor-development-projects/  
  316. Russian Corruption, 1945 Magazine: https://www.19fortyfive.com/2023/08/the-corruption-war-russia-is-losing-the-war-for-the-same-reason-it-started-it/
  317. EPOCH Times article on EPA Regulations, Aug. 2023: https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/two-princeton-mit-scientists-say-epa-climate-regulations-based-on-a-hoax-5460699?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=BonginoReport&src_src=partner&src_cmp=BonginoReport
  318. Blackrock and World Affairs, June 23, 2023: https://thepostmillennial.com/breaking-james-okeefe-exposes-blackrock-recruiter-bragging-about-deciding-peoples-fate-saying-war-is-good-for-business?utm_campaign=64487
  319. Alex Epstein’s May 3, 2023 “Energy Talking Points” article on IPCC: https://energytalkingpoints.com/syr/
  320. Duke Energy Nuclear Plans for the future, POWER Magazine: https://www.powermag.com/despite-south-carolina-irp-rejection-duke-energy-seeks-80-year-operation-for-oconee-nuclear-units/
  321. Duke Energy Carolinas IRP Release, August 17, 2023: https://news.duke-energy.com/releases/duke-energy-files-updated-carbon-plan-to-serve-the-growing-energy-needs-of-a-thriving-north-carolina?_gl=1*1kojqv6*_ga*MTEyODIxMDQ3Mi4xNjkyMzU1Njg5*_ga_HB58MJRNTY*MTY5MjY5MjU5MS41LjAuMTY5MjY5MjYwMC4wLjAuMA..&_ga=2.177605357.978770941.1692630381-1128210472.1692355689
  322. Tucker Carlson and Douglas MacGregor interview, start at 40 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMUAaWK79Vc
  323. Grace Stanke, “Miss America” Nuclear Engineer, https://www.powermag.com/the-power-interview-miss-america-talks-importance-of-nuclear-power/
  324. Tablet, Hoax of the Century, 13 Ways of Looking at Disinformation by Jacob Siegel: https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/guide-understanding-hoax-century-thirteen-ways-looking-disinformation?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
  325. Gatestone Institute on CCP Influence of U.S. Policy, Aug. 2023: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19921/china-influence-activity-us
  326. Ross Rant, August 2023: https://mailchi.mp/0ce835348441/the-ross-rant-august-21?e=2f947c15a6
  327. Happer & Lindzen vs. EPA Full Text, July 2023: https://co2coalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Happer-Lindzen-EPA-Power-Plants-2023-07-19.pdf
  328. Count on Coal Blog: https://www.countoncoal.org/2023/08/the-energy-policy-torpedo/
  329. 25 Myths of MSM Coverage of Hurricane Idalia by Alex Epstein, Sept. 2023: https://alexepstein.substack.com/p/25-myths-in-the-medias-idalia-coverage?r=kv1a9&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
  330. World Economic Forum August 2022 World Population Graphs and Data: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/07/populations-around-world-changed-over-the-years/
  331. ExxonMobil Energy Outlook-Sept. 2023: https://corporate.exxonmobil.com/what-we-do/energy-supply/global-outlook/global-energy-fundamentals
  332. Inside Lines, PJM Announcement of Power Shortages due to EPA Rules, August 8, 2023: https://insidelines.pjm.com/pjm-ercot-spp-and-miso-join-together-on-comments-on-epa-emissions-rule/
  333. Duke Power References of Oconee & Marshall Steam Plant Annual Report 1967: https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML1526/ML15261A046.pdf
  334. EnvironMENTAL Blog on Hunger Games, Food & Energy, Sept 2023: https://envmental.substack.com/p/hunger-games
  335. Babcock & Wilcox History and Time Line: https://www.babcock.com/home/about/corporate/history/
  336. Obama You Tube Describing Third Term with a Standin President: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JI2Xtqd4Mts
  337. Western Journal on Obama Giving Instructions to a “Standin President” This from 2020: https://www.westernjournal.com/watch-obama-talks-using-stand-front-man-third-term/
  338. Rio Times article on the World Economic Forum: https://www.riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/modern-day-censorship/meet-all-3800-graduates-of-klaus-schwabs-globalist-wef-education-programs-by-name/
  339. CO2 is Not A Pollutant, WUWT, Sept 8, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/09/10/why-co2-is-not-a-pollutant/
  340. U.S. Navy CO2 limits in submarines: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30511437/
  341. WUWT “Does CO2 Affect Human Performance?” https://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/10/17/claim-co2-makes-you-stupid-as-a-submariner-that-question/
  342. Science Matters, Ron Clutz, Climatism History  Science Matters, Sept. 11, 2023: https://rclutz.com/2023/09/11/climatism-based-on-history-of-errors/#like-32981
  343. One Barrel of Oil, What Can it Provide? A Great Graphic: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/can-made-one-barrel-oil/
  344. POWER article on Reliability concerns of NERC, May 2023: https://www.powermag.com/nerc-identifies-energy-policy-as-key-risk-to-grid-reliability-amid-evolving-challenges/
  345. NERC Electric Reliability Corporation (ERO) Report August 27, 2023: https://www.nerc.com/comm/RISC/Related%20Files%20DL/RISC_ERO_Priorities_Report_2023_Board_Approved_Aug_17_2023.pdf
  346. Harold Hamm’s book, “Game Changer” Review by Dick Storm: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/09/17/harold-hamms-book-game-changer-a-must-read-for-elected-officials-and-candidates-for-elective-office/  
  347. EPOCH Times, Is ESG Illegal?: Kevin Stocklin on the New ‘High Priests of Society’ Transforming Corporate America
    video on the harm of ESG policies: https://www.theepochtimes.com/epochtv/is-esg-illegal-kevin-stocklin-on-the-new-high-priests-of-society-transforming-corporate-america-5491828?utm_source=ref_share&src_src=ref_share&utm_campaign=gv-cc&src_cmp=gv-cc
  348. America’s Power website and summary of the importance of coal plants during the recent heat wave: https://americaspower.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Heat-Wave-Blog-September-202378.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2y0Tb8H7_fnsIYut1IRFdAWQx5ljYW5d3B-Yg9p6oQ1FTXRTU_y4EKVWg_aem_AfK9EPeglWxPOB-g_fIJWyhi9CwXDutc_uZ1rODmrxd2VD1EDQ2ikj4Ersx10d79bUw&mibextid=2JQ9oc
  349. Dr. Samuele Furfari article on BRICS+ : It reminds me of what an Italian MEP once said: ‘If you think you are a leader and nobody follows you, you are a loser.’ The BRICS+ demonstrate this obviousness.
    https://factuel.media/blogs/blog-articles/brics-et-co%E2%82%82-rebattent-les-cartes-de-la-geopolitique_ba_20552247
  350. MSNBC Interview with Chris Wright, The bear case for oil is the economy and a serious recession, says Liberty Energy CEO Chris Wright, Sept 15, 2023: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/09/15/the-bear-case-for-oil-is-the-economy-and-a-serious-recession-says-liberty-energy-ceo-chris-wright.html
  351. Grid Brief, Sept 22, 2023, “What’s Keeping the Lights On”: https://www.gridbrief.com/p/whats-keeping-lights-5281
    GRID Brief, Energy is the Economy, by Robert Hargraves, 2022: https://www.gridbrief.com/p/guest-feature-energy-economy
  352. Aluminum Production Costs summary by Taylor and Francis online, Carlos Braga 2016 : https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21642583.2016.1238325?utm_source=www.gridbrief.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=guest-feature-energy-is-the-economy 
  353.  Biden’s Apocalyptic Green Fantasies will Bankrupt Us All, No, Joe, Climate Change  is Not Worse than Nuclear War, The Telegraph, Sept. 2023: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/09/24/biden-green-energy-evs-bankrupt/
  354. AP “Deindustrialization of Germany due to Energy Shortages/Costs” Sept 27, 2023: https://apnews.com/article/germany-economy-energy-crisis-russia-8a00eebbfab3f20c5c66b1cd85ae84ed
  355. American Thinker, Push for Net-Zero is Climate Hoax. Fiction not Energy Reality: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2023/05/the_push_for_net_zero_emissions_is_climate_hoax_fiction_not_energy_reality.html 
  356.  Woke Duke Energy Hikes Rates to meet ESG Goals, Daily Signal: https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/09/20/woke-duke-energy-jacks-up-electric-rates-pay-esg-zero-carbon-mandates/?utm_source=TDS_Email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CapitolBell&mkt_tok=ODI0LU1IVC0zMDQAAAGOcfMbXeZyx2Abdfet2xsuAhLUtNh7V903HWbHNDI1PfuObvYuaYqCNu2K-3WipQQks8kFb3CXNoRVHuFqkwHERIs0PbGRs-R-766huX_6DVqPomYvrQ
  357. ESG Rate increase in Wyoming, Cowboy State Daily: https://cowboystatedaily.com/2023/09/26/more-scrutiny-over-details-of-30-rocky-mountain-power-rate-hike/
  358. Alabama Power Rate Increases due to ESG: https://dothaneagle.com/news/state-and-regional/alabama-power-electric-rates-rising-in-early-2023-for-third-increase-in-a-year/article_90bba23e-f14d-5fee-9b15-f0bcc311085a.html#:~:text=That%20increase%20took%20effect%20in,the%20beginning%20of%20this%20year
  359. Rocky Mountain Power’s proposed 30% Rate increase? RMP Rate Increase
  360. NC Legislature enacted “2021 Carbon Plan”: https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2021/Bills/House/PDF/H951v6.pdf
  361. Americas Best Coal Plants, 2014, Power Engineering Magazine: https://www.power-eng.com/emissions/air-pollution-control-equipment-services/america-s-best-coal-plants/
  362. Oil Production by country of the world, 2022: https://energynow.com/2023/09/charted-the-worlds-biggest-oil-producers-visual-capitalist/?utm_content=266130089&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin&hss_channel=lcp-11366997
  363. Election contributions by largest companies in U.S.: https://hotair.com/tree-hugging-sister/2023/09/21/all-your-country-are-belong-to-blue-n579698
  364. Zero Carbon: https://boereport-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/boereport.com/2023/09/29/the-rush-to-net-zero-2035-and-the-implications-for-electrical-grid-transitions/amp/  
  365. Our World in Data, CO2 Emissions of the world: https://ourworldindata.org/greenhouse-gas-emissions
  366. Daily Caller, Mike McKenna article on Earth Day, 50 years of failure: https://dailycaller.com/2023/04/21/opinion-earth-day-celebrates-a-half-century-legacy-of-failure-mike-mckenna/
  367. The Green Transition is “Social Vandalism” WUWT, Oct. 3, 2023:  https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/10/03/the-energy-transition-is-social-vandalism/
  368. America’s Power Coal Facts: https://americaspower.org/COAL-FACTS/
  369. NERC 200-2023 Winter Assessment: https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_WRA_2022.pdf  
  370. EIA Peak U.S. Demand hits Record, July 27, 2023: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=60602&utm_source=LinkedIn&utm_medium=EIAsocial&utm_id=Amplification
  371. Heritage review of New Source Review, 2002: https://www.heritage.org/environment/report/why-the-new-source-review-program-needs-reform-primer-nsr
  372. EPA Update on NSR, (New Source Review) Sept 2023: https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations
  373. EPA and Congress Testimony on NSR, 2018: https://www.epa.gov/archive/epa/newsreleases/epas-new-source-review-actions-review.html
  374. Real Clear Energy, Oct. 6, 2023: https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2023/10/06/a_precipitous_dash_to_a_grid_reliability_crisis_984481.html
  375. RTO Insider Article on Loss of Reliability of the Grid, “Rendezvous With Reality” Sept. 11, 2023: https://www.rtoinsider.com/55069-grid-rendezvous-reality-resource-adequacy-summit/
  376. You Tube, Panama Canal Update, Oct. 2023: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GI0zANA3S4
  377. Energy Institute World Energy Data and Report: https://www.energyinst.org/statistical-review/resources-and-data-downloads
  378. Watt Logic, Kathryn Porter Website: http://watt-logic.com/blog/?latest
  379. Coal Power by State, Visual Capitalist: https://elements.visualcapitalist.com/biggest-sources-of-electricity-by-state-and-province/?fbclid=IwAR3Fa1bPKJl_dgeuep-N_9L5ILEdFleffPLjjK37dIT4pLyYZZKN0JEmXcE_aem_AXXqoqu4wBCFkYY6pj4YWwUqF6PWwTvj8RQs6De3q3c4PkMffZuWrA5J_tL2S4ql8z0&mibextid=2JQ9oc
  380. Electric Cooperatives of SC Testimony to Congress, Oct 2023: https://www.ecsc.org/news/mid-carolina-electric-ceo-paulling-urges-federal-officials-act-avoid-blackouts
  381.   Update on Nuclear Plants WUWT, Oct. 18, 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/10/17/nuclear-go-round-nuscale-vogtle-palisades/
  382. LLNL Sankey Diagram, 2022 : https://flowcharts.llnl.gov
    Lithium Ion Battery fire risk: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CwmiKXrKaz1/?igshid=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng==
  383. Fear the Cold, CO2 Coalition: https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Fear-the-Cold.html?soid=1101509381788&aid=TJ7nY5OPc1A
  384. IEA Methane Emissions: https://www.iea.org/reports/methane-tracker-2020
  385. WUWT The Energy Future We Need to Have Future Worth Having, Oct. 2023: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/10/25/the-energy-future-we-need-to-have-a-future-worth-having/
  386. World Coal Assoc Facts. : https://www.worldcoal.org/coal-facts/
  387. China Coal Plants Update, Oct. 2023: https://energyandcleanair.org/publication/chinas-new-coal-power-spree-continues-as-more-provinces-jump-on-the-bandwagon/
  388. WUWT Aussie First Nation Leaders Calls Out Senators on Insane Climate Policies: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2023/11/07/one-nation-leader-pauline-hanson-slams-colleagues-for-climate-lunacy/
  389. FERC-NERC Report on Winter Reliability Lessons from Elliott: https://www.ferc.gov/news-events/news/ferc-nerc-release-final-report-lessons-winter-storm-elliott
  390. Heartland article on California importing 75% of petroleum to provide fuel for airports, trucking and vital U.S. interests, Ron Stein, Nov. 2023: https://heartland.org/opinion/california-continues-to-be-a-national-security-risk-for-america/
  391. Mid America Energy, video of building a wind turbine and the enormous quantities of steel and concrete required for each one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84BeVq2Jm88
  392. Thomas J. Shepstone and Ron Stein on the Trillions wasted on wind and solar generation, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  393. $8 Trillion in Investment and all we get from Wind, Solar and other renewables and all we get for it is Higher Electric Bills, Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr, Ron Stein, et al: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  394. Capital Research Center on Warren Buffett’s Solar and Wind generation: https://capitalresearch.org/article/wind-power-doesnt-make-sense-without-the-tax-credits-part-1/
  395. Bjorn Lomberg: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_nytimes-and-many-other-suggest-that-the-more-activity-7350118091680313344-CTSF?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  396. Bjorn Lomberg on high cost of solar and wind: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_the-expensive-green-delusion-despite-green-activity-7331637580842594304-yJtG?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  397. Substack article by Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Solar with Battery Backup, July 5th, 2025:https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/the-baseload-solar-beatdown
  398. Substack by Orr and Rolling in 2024 on the Myth of Cheap Solar: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/how-to-destroy-the-myth-of-cheap  
  399. Thomas J. Shepstone on Pennsylvania Solar project failure when tax subsidies were removed, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/centre-county-solar-project-goes?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  400. EIA List of Electricity Rates by State: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a
  401. Hawaii has the highest electricity rates in the U.S. They have plenty of sunshine and wind and they quit using coal. Here is an update of why their electricity costs so much: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/20/hawaii-a-glimpse-into-the-future-of-the-green-new-deal-aka-inflation-reduction-act-here-is-an-update/
  402. Thomas J. Shepstone on Why Do Wind and Solar Need Subsidies if they are so Chep?: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-are-solar-and-wind-still-government?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  403. EIA Most of new generation capacity in 2025 from Solar, Aug. 20, 2025: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65964&utm_medium=email
  404. WSJ on Wind and Solar subsidies, Aug. 21, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/why-solar-and-wind-power-can-thrive-without-subsidies-cee47663
  405. Why are California Electricity Prices So High?, Sub Stack: https://open.substack.com/pub/mestes/p/why-are-californias-electricity-prices?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  406. Excellent article by Tilak Doshi, Renewables are Not Cheap, Dec. 2025, WUWT, https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/12/06/time-to-stop-pretending-renewables-are-cheap/
  407. Energy Bad Boys article on Electricity, Highest Rates in Red and Blue States, Dec. 13, 2025:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/blue-states-high-rates?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web  
  408. Energy Bad Boys Great Chart of Electricity Prices by States, Dec. 27, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/visualizing-2026?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  409. Failures of the renewables transition era are insults to taxpayers. The worlds’ population depends on insulation, wires, computers, and fertilizers that “renewables” cannot provide. Published September 1, 2025, in America Out Loud NEWS https://www.americaoutloud.news/failures-of-the-renewables-transition-era-are-insults-to-taxpayers/
  410. Inside Climate News on Maryland Matters of Why Electric Costs are Escalating: https://marylandmatters.org/2025/09/01/why-prices-are-soaring-in-the-countrys-largest-grid-region-explained-in-5-charts/

Pros and Cons of Renewable and Conventional Electricity Generation in the Red State of S.C., Part 2

The S.C. Legislature had two choices: 1. Keep Electricity prices reasonable to keep low electricity costs for citizens plus, attract more industry or 2. Transition to Solar, Wind, Batteries, Natural Gas and create significantly higher electric bills. They chose option 2. just as most U.S. Blue states did…

The experiences of most countries and U.S. states that have “transitioned” to renewable energy has caused electricity prices to sharply rise and caused de-industrialization. Yet, the U.S. policymakers continue the War on Coal” by implementing harmful Net-Zero Carbon policies. The Green New Deal/Inflation Reduction Act policy momentum continues into 2026. Investments in new electricity generation for fiscal year 2026, according to the EIA is still over 90% renewables. That’s right, not one Dispatchable or Base Load coal or nuclear plant is planned for construction in 2026, according to the EIA as of January 2026.

South Carolina although believed to be a very Conservative state, the energy policy is just as Blue as California or Massachusetts. The South Carolina law (S.C. Code Ann. §58-37-40) directs the retirement of coal-fired generation:

S.C. General Assembly — H.3194 (Session 124, 2021–2022)

Part 1 of this article covered Winter Storm Fern and the importance of coal to provide over 80% of the low country’s electricity production.

Let’s move forward to future planning for increasing generation to meet the growing Demand. Here below is the narrowly focused basis of low CO2 generation planning by Santee-Cooper (aka South Carolina Public Service Authority) updated IRP. As you can see, the primary driver of the type of new generation capacity is CO2 Emissions. Not Grid reliability, affordability, Dispatchability or industrial economics. This is in opposition to the Trump energy agenda and policy to exit the anti-American Paris Agreement and to repeal the CO2 Endangerment Finding and keep America strong. President Trump has done his part, our state, like many blue states and Deep State Bureaucrats, is continuing to trod down the destructive regulatory path of Net-Zero Carbon.

My Letter to S.C. Senator Davis, April 2025

I wrote to S.C. Senator Davis as a response to his Press Release asking for public comments. Here are some excerpts from my letter to Senator Davis:

This letter was written last year, well before the Iranian conflict began. Gas prices are likely to become more volatile and mostly higher when summer electricity Demand begins and of course, a lot higher next December.

Included in the letter to Senator Davis was a couple charts, including this one of the renewable premium paid in electricity costs in various countries of the world.

I have written an article on my blog which outlines the good results of coal plants (such as Santee-Cooper’s excellent record of 80 years) and the references to other states and countries that have abandoned coal fuel. The blog post is here.

As of this writing, the S.C. Legislature has not budged from the the Net Zero path to increased electricity costs and less reliability.

Conclusion: S.C. is Planning for Electricity Price Rises and Less Grid Reliability

The previous blog posts showed many details of Palmetto Electric’s Bulk Power Supply, from Santee-Cooper. Here, here, here, here and here.

By planning for Net Zero Carbon, South Carolina is planning for higher electricity costs in lieu of building new coal plants to preserve our position as one of the states with the most Industry and consumer friendly low electric rates.

Additional references are listed below to show the clear rise in electric rates as more dependence on variable generation and battery storage. Another consideration is resistance to fuel interruptions during times of war, such as we have now. Coal power generation has the inherent advantage of storing weeks or months of primary energy in a coal pile on site.

Yours truly,

Dick Storm, March 17, 2026

References and information for further reading and research

  1. Santee-Cooper 2025 IRP Update  https://www.santeecooper.com/About/Integrated-Resource-Plan/presentations/Santee-Cooper-2025-IRP-Update.pdf
  2. Blue States are Like Watermellons, with electricity policy: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/blue-states-are-like-watermelons?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  3. Mitch Rolling and Isaac Orr article on Obama caused escalating electricity prices: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/necessarily-skyrocket?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  4. Example of Solar Panel Robustness during severe weather event in Indiana. March 2026: NIPSCO Solar Farm Destruction from Tornado, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/solar-scattered-coal-still-standing?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  5. CO2 Coalition — Striking Down the Endangerment Finding  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/striking-down-the-endangerment-finding
  6. VJ Jayaraj (CO2 Coalition), Sept. 2025  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/every-new-airport-every-new-highway
  7. S.C. Grid Info  https://www.gridinfo.com/south-carolina
  8. Winter Storm Fern Energy Review (Kilovar)  https://open.substack.com/pub/kilovar1959/p/fuel-the-january-26-winter-storms
  9. Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Blue States, High Rates: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/blue-states-high-rates
  10. Staggering Cost of New England Electricity  https://yankeeinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ISO-NE-r3b.pdf
  11. Big Beautiful Bill Must Stop Subsidizing Green Power  https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2025/05/28/the_big_beautiful_bill_must_stop_subsidizing_unreliable_power_grids_1112902.html
  12. Renewables Blueprint (American Experiment)  https://files.americanexperiment.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Renewable-Energy.pdf
  13. Electricity Prices by State (Electric Choice)  https://www.electricchoice.com/electricity-prices-by-state/
  14. President’s Executive Order on the Energy Emergency: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency/
  15. CO2 Coalition Fact Sheet. CO2 is NOT a pollutant, check the Facts on this web page to learn more: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  16. Electric Rates by State (This Old House)  https://www.thisoldhouse.com/electricity/electricity-rates-by-state
  17. Alex Epstein — China Solar Panels and Coal Power  https://alexepstein.substack.com/p/talking-points-roundup-us-nuclears
  18. Dick Storm LI Post on SC Energy policies and failed coal and nuclear plant plans: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7184184178920312833?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  19. How Can a 6,000 MW Utility in 2030 Become a 9,000 MW Utility in 2050 and Still Meet Net Zero Carbon? Update of last year’s article, May 2, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/02/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon-an-update-on-my-electricity-provider-in-south-carolina/
  20. Coal’s Final Battle, May 18, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/20/coals-final-battle/
  21. Tom Shepstone’s Substack repost of Dick Storm commentary, May 20, 2024: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-we-the-american-people-must-win?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
  22. Visualizing 100 Quadrillion BTUs. Shouldn’t Coal Remain in our Energy Mix?” : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/07/02/visualizing-100-quadrillion-btus-of-primary-energy-coal-should-remain-in-our-energy-mix/
  23. The Kingdom of Heaven Runs on Righteousness, The Kingdom of Earth Runs on Energy, Oct. 3, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/10/03/heaven-runs-on-righteousness-earth-runs-on-energy/
  24. Why is Western Civilization Self Sabotaging the Primary Energy that Provides 80% of the fuel for America’s Life-Blood of Reliable Electricity, with the War on Carbon?.     : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/12/17/why-is-western-civilization-self-sabotaging-the-primary-energy-sources-that-provide-80-of-the-fuel-for-americas-life-blood-of-reliable-electricity-with-the-war-on-carbon/
  25. Musings on the Self-Sabotaging Energy Policies and a Reminder of the History of the Rise and Fall of Nations:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/01/13/musings-on-self-sabotaging-energy-policies-and-a-reminder-of-the-history-of-the-rise-and-fall-of-nations/
  26. The EPA “Endangerment Finding” and why it Needs to Go, Feb. 2, 2025: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-1ZW
  27. The SWAMP MONSTER vs. 300 Million Americans, Feb. 21, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/21/the-swamp-monster-vs-the-best-interests-of-the-united-states-of-america/
  28. Thomas J. Shepstone Substack on Dick Storm’s “Primer on How to Ensure Electricity Security (and How to Destroy It)”:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/a-primer-on-how-to-ensure-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  29. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  30.  Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  31. David Siegel videos on Climate Change: https://www.cuttingthroughthenoise.net/climate-curious 
  32. The EPA Endangerment Finding Needs to Go! Thomas Shepstone publishing of Dick Storm article, March 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-epa-endangerment-finding-needs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  33. The U.S. Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis was Created by GONGO the SWAMP Monster, March 19, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/19/the-u-s-self-inflicted-electricity-generation-crisis-was-created-by-gongo-the-swamp-monster-here-is-how-to-end-it/
  34. Coal Power, It is the End Result that Matters!:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/28/coal-power-it-is-the-end-result-that-counts/
  35. My Letter to Senator Davis on Coal Power in S.C. April 1, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/03/response-to-palmetto-electric-request-to-contact-our-s-c-senators/
  36. The Solution to America’s Electricity Generation Crisis: Build New Coal Plants Now! https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/18/the-solution-to-the-nations-coming-electricity-reliability-crisis-build-new-coal-plants/
  37.  Clean Energy Crisis, May 2, 2025     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/02/clean-energy-crisis-2/
  38. Thomas J. Shepstone, edited version of Clean Energy Crisis on Substack, May 3, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-clean-energy-crisis-and-why-it?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  39. Repeal the IRA, Protect America’s Life-Blood of Energy and Electricity”:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/15/repeal-the-ira-protect-americas-lifeblood-of-energy-and-electricity-supply/
  40. Ron Stein and Dick Storm co authored article in America Out Loud, May 19, 2025: https://www.americaoutloud.news/intermittent-electricity-from-renewables-cannot-support-ai-and-data-centers/ https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/27/internal-and-external-threats-to-the-u-s-electric-grid/
  41. Conventional Energy Including Coal is the Life-Blood of America:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/18/conventional-energy-including-coal-is-the-life-blood-of-america/
  42. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm blog post on the “Madness of the Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis” https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-madness-of-the-us-self-inflicted?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  43. Energy is the Economy and Electricity is the Life-Blood of western civilization Coal Can Make America’s Electricity Supply Great Again  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/07/30/energy-is-the-economy-electricity-is-the-life-blood-of-western-civilization-coal-can-make-americas-electricity-supply-great-again/
  44. Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/electricity-is-the-life-blood-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  45. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/    
  46. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  47. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  48. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  49. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/
  50. Reality of Building 32,000 MW of New Generation Capacity/Year. Solutions; Build New Coal Plants Now!,  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  51. Power for the U.S.A. Reality of Building 32,000 MW each year: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  52. The Importance of Coal and Thermal Performance Improvements for Heat-Rate and Resiliency: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/02/08/the-importance-of-coal-thermal-performance-considerations-for-heat-rate-and-resiliency/
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
     
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  53. Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables in the Red State of S.C.:     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/03/11/pros-and-cons-of-conventional-and-renewables-electricity-generation-in-the-red-state-of-south-carolina-part-1/
  54.  Jason Hayes republishing of Why Electric rates in SC will Rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonhayes/p/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  55. Don’t believe the journalists of the MSM, Here are many Scientific Papers that dispute the affects of manmade Climate Change: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/01/14/nearly-140-scientific-papers-detail-the-minuscule-effect-co2-has-on-earths-temperature/
  56. Dr. Timothy Ball on the Corruption of Science, 2014: https://www.alachuacounty.us/Depts/epd/EPAC/BOOK%20REVIEW%20-%20‘THE%20DELIBERATE%20CORRUPTION%20OF%20CLIMATE%20SCIENCE%20by%20TIM%20BALL.pdf
  57. CO2 Coalition Website with many Facts and articles: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  58. Ken Haapala and the Science and Environmental Policy Project:http://sepp.org/twtwfiles/2022/TWTW%209-10-2022.pdf
  59. Professor Richard Lindzen of MIT, Article on his views on Climate Change: https://clintel.org/the-imaginary-climate-crisis-how-can-we-change-the-message-a-talk-by-richard-lindzen/
  60. WUWT Sept. 2021, Summary of William Happer (Happer is Princeton Professor of Physics) and Wijngaarden   : https://wattsupwiththat.com/2021/09/21/the-greenhouse-effect-a-summary-of-wijngaarden-and-happer/
  61. Climate Activism, WUWT March 23, 2022: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/03/23/climate-change-is-about-control-stupid-not-the-environment/ 
  62.  POWER Magazine, Sonal Patel, Sept 9, 2022, EPA Rules likely to shut down about 86 GW of coal generation in next few years: https://www.powermag.com/group-epas-coordinated-regulatory-assault-on-coal-power-could-push-retirements-beyond-86-gw-by-2030/?oly_enc_id=3247D5884312C9W
  63. Perhaps some day a Documentary will be made to summarize how Coal was Demonized by NGOs, government, WEF, MSM, Entertainment, Dark Money, and Environmental Extremists just as nuclear power was during the 1970 and 1980’s? Here is “Pandora’s Promise”, 2013 Movie to Expose the Facts about Nuclear Power and how it was wrongly Demonized, causing the collapse of the nuclear Supply-Chain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMutoR8YTlQ
  64. NIPSCO Solar Farm Destruction from Tornado, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/solar-scattered-coal-still-standing?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  65. Mid America Energy, video of building a wind turbine and the enormous quantities of steel and concrete required for each one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84BeVq2Jm88
  66. Thomas J. Shepstone and Ron Stein on the Trillions wasted on wind and solar generation, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  67. $8 Trillion in Investment and all we get from Wind, Solar and other renewables and all we get for it is Higher Electric Bills, Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr, Ron Stein, et al: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  68. Capital Research Center on Warren Buffett’s Solar and Wind generation: https://capitalresearch.org/article/wind-power-doesnt-make-sense-without-the-tax-credits-part-1/
  69. Bjorn Lomberg: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_nytimes-and-many-other-suggest-that-the-more-activity-7350118091680313344-CTSF?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  70. Bjorn Lomberg on high cost of solar and wind: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_the-expensive-green-delusion-despite-green-activity-7331637580842594304-yJtG?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  71. Substack article by Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Solar with Battery Backup, July 5th, 2025:https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/the-baseload-solar-beatdown
  72. Substack by Orr and Rolling in 2024 on the Myth of Cheap Solar: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/how-to-destroy-the-myth-of-cheap  
  73. Thomas J. Shepstone on Pennsylvania Solar project failure when tax subsidies were removed, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/centre-county-solar-project-goes?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  74. EIA List of Electricity Rates by State: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/20/hawaii-a-glimpse-into-the-future-of-the-green-new-deal-aka-inflation-reduction-act-here-is-an-update/
  75. Thomas J. Shepstone on Why Do Wind and Solar Need Subsidies if they are so Cheap?: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-are-solar-and-wind-still-government?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  76. EIA Most of new generation capacity in 2025 from Solar, Aug. 20, 2025: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65964&utm_medium=email
  77. WSJ on Wind and Solar subsidies, Aug. 21, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/why-solar-and-wind-power-can-thrive-without-subsidies-cee47663
  78. Why are California Electricity Prices So High?, Sub Stack: https://open.substack.com/pub/mestes/p/why-are-californias-electricity-prices?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  79. Excellent article by Tilak Doshi, Renewables are Not Cheap, Dec. 2025, WUWT, https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/12/06/time-to-stop-pretending-renewables-are-cheap/
  80. Energy Bad Boys article on Electricity, Highest Rates in Red and Blue States, Dec. 13, 2025:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/blue-states-high-rates?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web  
  81. Energy Bad Boys Great Chart of Electricity Prices by States, Dec. 27, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/visualizing-2026?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  82. Failures of the renewables transition era are insults to taxpayers. The worlds’ population depends on insulation, wires, computers, and fertilizers that “renewables” cannot provide.
    Published September 1, 2025, in America Out Loud NEWS
    https://www.americaoutloud.news/failures-of-the-renewables-transition-era-are-insults-to-taxpayers/
  83. Inside Climate News on Maryland Matters of Why Electric Costs are Escalating: https://marylandmatters.org/2025/09/01/why-prices-are-soaring-in-the-countrys-largest-grid-region-explained-in-5-charts/

The Real Problem With American Energy Policy

This post will be short and to the point. Myself and many of my energy experienced friends have watched as absolutely anti-American, anti-Human energy polices have come to be. My friend Tom cut through the BS and wrote the following as a response to the Daily Caller article which documented Chinese involvement in NGOs impacting U.S. Energy Policy. From my very experienced electricity generation engineer, Tom:

This shows the real problem we have in the energy sector:

  • Nuclear power is the safest way to generate safe, clean, environmentally friendly bulk power. But the woman running the cash register at Walmart has been convinced by Jane Fonda and Greenpeace that nuclear power is dangerous and has a huge environmental problem with waste. Neither of these, or all the other fallacies that are widely believed regarding nuclear power are true. How did it ever get this bad?
  •  Clean coal technology has advanced to an amazing level. Go to the top of Mount Washington in Pittsburgh, PA and look out over the clean bright city. Yes, 120 years ago the air was so bad that they needed streetlights during the day. The Monongahela River did indeed catch on fire (so did Lake Erie near Cleveland). But that was then, not now, and there is no way we are going back to using 1800’s technology for coal power plants. Yet, the West Penn Power and Cheswick plants were recently shut down and dismantled. The environmental groups have succeeded in brainwashing most of the non-technical people that climate change is real. They will believe Al Gore and Leonardo DeCaprio rather than the people that actually understand the environmental impact of energy generation. (oh, and they are fighting against building a datacenter on the Cheswick plant sight just because – it’s a lot easier to NIMBY everything than try to find real solutions).
  • The total thermal efficiency cycle for electric cars is far worse than burning a primary fuel in an internal combustion engine. How does this inefficiency impact the environment? (Answer: all the inefficiency is heat dissipated directly to the environment – how in the world does that not contribute to “global warming”?) But the public has become convinced that electric cars are cleaner and the way of the future. Why isn’t the technical community telling the non-technical community this side of the story? (I think we know, government $$$$$, just like wind/solar, the more the government gets to subsidize, the more money available for other nefarious activities. Isn’t this the trap ASME fell into?)
  • We can make nuclear safer, coal cleaner, and cars more efficient until the cows come home. The problem is – these facts don’t matter. The three-headed (now 4 with the new head of the justice system) doesn’t operate on facts. Until we start addressing this problem (Root Cause) we are just spinning our wheels. Maybe we should start with the ASME – when an organization that is supposed to be a premier technically based organization goes woke, how are the average non-technical people out there supposed to know that? If they can’t rely on ASME, then who can they believe? (think Covid, Anthony Fauci, Health & Human Services, the American Medical Association, etc….or even worse – the legal profession).

My thanks to Tom for giving me permission to share these concisely written, truthful and troubling facts.

I have written on the SWAMP Influencers, Federal Regulations and NGOs before. Tom just did it with a great economy of words.

Thank God for President Trump, Chris Wright, Lee Zeldin and a well qualified Cabinet of qualified people to look out for the best interests for America. In closing, let me suggest reading the references listed below if you are curious of who and how the absurd Federal Regulations have come to be.

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, March 14, 2026

            

References and information that supports my opinion and text written above:

  1. Daily Caller article: https://dailycaller.com/2026/03/13/china-earthjustice-ccp-energy-oil-gas-green-foreign-agents-louisiana/
  2. Pelican Institute for Public Policy: https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/barriers_to_louisiana_energy_dominance_paper.pdf
  3. Capital Research on Power Industry Influencers, 2026: https://capitalresearch.org/?s=NGOs+against+U.S.+Power+Generation
  4. The War on Carbon, How it Came to Be” October 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/16/the-war-on-carbon-how-it-came-to-be/
  5. Without New Thinking on Nuclear Power, Anti-Carbon Policy Can’t Succeed, Nov. 11, 2021 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/11/13/without-new-thinking-on-nuclear-power-anti-carbon-climate-policy-cant-succeed/
  6. The Green Energy Crisis is Here, Part 1, Sept. 17, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/29/the-green-energy-crisis-is-here-part-1/
  7. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 2, “Meet Some of the People that Caused it”,  June 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/14/green-energy-crisis-part-2-meet-the-policy-makers-that-caused-it/
  8. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  9. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 3, June 26, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/26/green-energy-crisis-part-3-public-energy-education-is-needed-each-person-in-the-u-s-uses-about-315-million-btus-of-primary-energy-year-this-is-not-practical-or-even-possible-to-replace-with-win/
  10. Wake Up America! Sept. 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/09/20/please-wake-up-america-your-energy-and-electricity-generation-reliability-are-at-risk/
  11.  Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 1,  79 Quadrillion BTUs, The Enormity of the Fossil Energy Systems Providing Sustainable Lives, Jan. 11, 2024 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/01/11/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-1-79-quadrillion-btusthe-enormity-of-the-fossil-energy-systems-providing-sustainable-lives/
  12.  Influencers of U.S. Energy Policy, January 3, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/04/influencers-of-american-energy-policy/
  13. Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 2, The Reality of Replacing Conventional Forms of Energy, Jan. 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/06/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-2-some-facts-on-the-reality-of-replacing-conventional-forms-of-energy/
  14.  Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 3, The Transition that Isn’t, from the perspective of Minerals, Feb. 8, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/08/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-3-the-transition-that-isnt-from-the-perspective-of-minerals/
  15. Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 4, The True Agenda for Climate Policies, Feb. 13, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/13/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-electricity-generation-and-environmental-protection-part-4-what-is-the-true-agenda-for-climate-policies/
  16. 114th Congress, Majority Staff Report, Obama’s Carbon Mandate, August 2015: http://www.scientificintegrityinstitute.org/USSEWP080415.pdf
  17. Gina McCarthy, Climate Czar, IRS 990 form when she worked at the NRDC Action Fund, between Obama and Biden Administrations, 2020: Click to access nrdc-actionfund-990-2020.pdf
  18. Gina McCarthy Bio on EPA website: https://archive.epa.gov/epa/history/administrator-gina-mccarthy-2013-2017.html 
  19. Competitive Enterprise Institute, “Cooler Heads”, Sept 9, 2022, Excellent reading of more on extremists and their effectiveness in fighting coal and hydrocarbons: https://go.cei.org/webmail/287682/949316776/68e507be334cf34c7d54b4b2a348b50f1d373ec69c94d0d629001f91129chttps://www.wsj.com/articles/the-coming-global-crisis-of-climate-policy-europe-germany-energy-prices-bankruptcy-winter-subsidies-borrowing-green-nuclear-116626510701e7d
  20. Capital Research Center, Influence Watch, Sea Change Foundation, March 2022: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/sea-change-foundation/
  21. Environmental Protection Agency key people by Influence Watch: : https://www.influencewatch.org/government-agency/biden-administration-independent-agencies/#environmental-protection-agency
  22. National Review article on Uranium One Deal, during Obama Administration, 2017: https://www.nationalreview.com/2017/10/uranium-one-deal-obama-administration-doj-hillary-clinton-racketeering/ 
  23. Understanding the Uranium One Scandal, by Canada Free Press, Nov. 2017: https://canadafreepress.com/article/understanding-the-uranium-one-scandal 
  24. Podesta Appointed Biden’s Green Investment Czar, Gatestone Institute, Sept. 2022: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18943/john-podesta-green-investment
  25. Podesta paid $35 million by Russian Government for Uranium Deal, Breitbart News, 2019: https://newspunch.com/russian-govt-paid-35-million-john-podesta/
  26. New York Post article on Podesta Involvement with Russians when he was Hillary Clinton’s Campaign Chief, 2017: https://nypost.com/2017/07/05/uncovering-the-russia-ties-of-hillarys-campaign-chief/
  27. McCarthy Resigns from Whitehouse position, Sept. 2022, Fox News: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-national-climate-adviser-gina-mccarthy-resigns 
  28. Joe Goffman background by Daily Caller News Foundation, Aug. 2022: https://dailycaller.com/2022/08/23/biden-epa-ethics-law-watchdogs-joseph-goffman/ 
  29. E&E News, Goffman Appointment Deadlocked by EPW Committee, Nov. 2022: https://www.eenews.net/articles/committee-deadlocks-on-epa-air-nominee/ 
  30. Joe Goffman, EPA Extremist employed at top of U.S. EPA as Assistant Administrator: https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/in-the-news/capito-op-ed-joe-goffman-the-wrong-choice-to-help-lead-epa
  31. Big Green Radicals, 2014  : https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/epa-report.pdf
  32. NRDC Influence Watch information: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/natural-resources-defense-council-nrdc/ 
  33. Business Insider, Links of Russian Funds to NRDC Funding to fight Fracking: https://www.businessinsider.com/a-russian-linked-company-in-bermuda-is-funneling-millions-to-us-anti-fracking-groups-2015-1
  34. Capital Research Center, The Left’s War on Coal: https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-lefts-war-on-coal-part-3/
  35. Department of Energy people, by Influence Watch: https://www.influencewatch.org/government-agency/biden-administration-department-of-energy/
  36. John Kerry, Far Left Support, Fox News Aug 2022: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/john-kerrys-climate-office-rife-ties-far-left-green-groups
  37. Activist Facts, Sierra Club, Beyond Coal, Beyond Gas, Nuclear: https://www.activistfacts.com/organizations/194-sierra-club/
  38. Background on the “World Economic Forum” and Klaus Schwab: https://larryalextaunton.com/2022/10/the-great-jet-set-klaus-schwab-the-world-economic-forum-and-the-new-fascism-part-1-the-perils-of-utopia 
  39. John Podesta, Head of 300+ Billion dollars of U.S. Taxpayer funds for clean energy. Check Influence Watch to read some interesting background on his career: https://www.influencewatch.org/person/john-podesta/ 
  40. Everything we know about the Uranium One Deal, Business Insider April 28, 2015: https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-we-know-about-the-hillary-clinton-russia-uranium-scandal-2015-4?op=1 
  41. Inside the War on Coal Politico, The Agenda 2015: https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2015/05/inside-war-on-coal-000002/
  42. EPA Retains Tools to Harm Coal Power Production, Utility Dive, July 1, 2022: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/supreme-court-epa-GHG-carbon-power-plant/626456/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-07-01%20Utility%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:42837%5D&utm_term=Utility%20Dive
  43. Bezos plans to give Billions to Environmental Org’s: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/20/jeff-bezos-pledges-1-billion-to-conservation-through-bezos-earth-fund.html
  44. Influence Watch Report of Enormous Funding of Environmental Groups, by wealthy Billionaires, 2014 : https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2020/10/chain-of-environmental-command-2014-report.pdf
  45. Green Watch (several Parts Series) Oct. 2020 Funding of Sierra Club, Greenpeace and other Environmentalists Groups to Fight Carbon. Not only coal but also natural gas production: https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-greening-of-pennsylvania-part-4/
  46. NRDC China Office: https://chinadevelopmentbrief.org/ngos/natural-resources-defense-council-nrdc/  
  47. Don’t believe the journalists of the MSM, Here are many Scientific Papers that dispute the affects of manmade Climate Change: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/01/14/nearly-140-scientific-papers-detail-the-minuscule-effect-co2-has-on-earths-temperature/
  48. Dr. Timothy Ball on the Corruption of Science, 2014: https://www.alachuacounty.us/Depts/epd/EPAC/BOOK%20REVIEW%20-%20‘THE%20DELIBERATE%20CORRUPTION%20OF%20CLIMATE%20SCIENCE%20by%20TIM%20BALL.pdf
  49. CO2 Coalition Website with many Facts and articles: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  50. Ken Haapala and the Science and Environmental Policy Project:http://sepp.org/twtwfiles/2022/TWTW%209-10-2022.pdf
  51. Professor Richard Lindzen of MIT, Article on his views on Climate Change: https://clintel.org/the-imaginary-climate-crisis-how-can-we-change-the-message-a-talk-by-richard-lindzen/
  52. WUWT Sept. 2021, Summary of William Happer (Happer is Princeton Professor of Physics) and Wijngaarden   : https://wattsupwiththat.com/2021/09/21/the-greenhouse-effect-a-summary-of-wijngaarden-and-happer/
  53. Climate Activism, WUWT March 23, 2022: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/03/23/climate-change-is-about-control-stupid-not-the-environment/ 
  54.  POWER Magazine, Sonal Patel, Sept 9, 2022, EPA Rules likely to shut down about 86 GW of coal generation in next few years: https://www.powermag.com/group-epas-coordinated-regulatory-assault-on-coal-power-could-push-retirements-beyond-86-gw-by-2030/?oly_enc_id=3247D5884312C9W
  55. Washington Post, Earth First Eco Terrorist Group with leader (Tracy Stone-Manning) now part of Biden Administration, BLM Dept: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/07/14/did-bidens-pick-lead-bureau-land-management-support-eco-terrorism/
  56. CEI-Patrick Michaels, Case for Vacating EPA Endangerment Finding (CO2): https://cei.org/studies/the-scientific-case-for-vacating-the-epas-carbon-dioxide-endangerment-finding/
  57. Vaclav Smil, World Energy Expert Bio: https://www.science.org/content/article/meet-vaclav-smil-man-who-has-quietly-shaped-how-world-thinks-about-energy 
  58. EPA Workforce by EEOC 18,000+ employees: https://www.eeoc.gov/federal-sector/environmental-protection-agency-epa-0
  59. D. Roy Spencer  (NASA Scientist) website: https://www.drroyspencer.com/global-warming-101/
  60. NASA Engineers Presentation,” The Right Stuff Climate Team” (Retired NASA Engineers): https://www.therightclimatestuff.com
  61. Sustainability, Science or Religion, Science Matters, by Ron Clutz: https://rclutz.com/2022/01/16/why-sustainability-isnt/?like_comment=39170&_wpnonce=d774fe4278
  62. History of Control of people by Politicians and the origins of the Climate Scare: http://www.davdata.nl/math/piedpiper.html
  63. EIA Real Time Electric Power Generation by Fuels & Transmission and Distribution: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric_overview/balancing_authority/SC
  64. Foundation For a Free Economy article on Water & Forest Management Cause of California Fires, Jan. 15, 2025:  https://fee.org/articles/why-los-angeles-is-burning/?utm_source=salesforce&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=fee-daily
  65. Subject: Chinese Communist Party Using Nonprofit Networks To Attack American Energy, Report Suggests | The Daily Caller

https://dailycaller.com/2026/03/13/china-earthjustice-ccp-energy-oil-gas-green-foreign-agents-louisiana/

Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables Electricity Generation In the Red State of South Carolina, Part 1

Background: Bulk Power Supply in the S.C. Lowcountry

The wholesale (Bulk Power) electricity providers serving our region are Santee-Cooper (officially the South Carolina Public Service Authority, or SCPSA) and Dominion Energy (which replaced South Carolina Electric & Gas as the Investor-Owned Utility). Most of Palmetto Electric’s Bulk Power comes from Santee-Cooper.

Santee-Cooper is a state-owned agency operating since the 1930s. Its first electricity was generated in 1941 from the Jefferies hydroelectric dam at Moncks Corner. Today, SCPSA’s hydroelectric plants still operate with a combined capacity of 142 MW.

Since 1941, population growth, industrial expansion, and regional electrification have driven steadily increasing electricity demand. During peak-load periods, SCPSA now generates up to approximately 5,000 MW. Over more than 80 years, coal has been the primary energy source, keeping production costs at or below the U.S. average—a commendable achievement.

This low-cost electricity attracted energy-intensive industries, most notably NUCOR Steel and Century Aluminum. Affordable coal-fired power was the decisive factor in locating these facilities in South Carolina. This has benefited heavy industry and all citizens of the region, including our area around Bluffton and Hilton Head Island.

How South Carolina Uses Its Electricity

Industrial, Residential, and Commercial customers each consume approximately one-third of total S.C. electricity generation. NUCOR, Century Aluminum, and other industrial customers consume about a third of all electricity generated by S.C. utilities.

The Scale of Industrial Energy Demand

Aluminum and steel production are extremely energy-intensive. It takes approximately 6 kWh of electricity to produce just one pound of aluminum from aluminum oxide powder—and that is only to create raw ingots, not including the energy to refine bauxite ore or form finished products.

At full production, NUCOR and Century Aluminum together consume more Bulk Power on a given day than the entire island of Hilton Head uses during its highest winter peak-load demand day.

Affordable electricity supports economic prosperity, employment, and national security—in addition to keeping our homes heated and cooled.

Coal-Fired Generating Stations in The Low Country of S.C.

The Cross Generating Station, located about 100 miles north of Hilton Head Island, has four units built between 1983 and 2009 with a combined capacity of approximately 2,390 MW. All four units are equipped with stack-cleaning equipment; the visible stack plume is harmless water vapor.

Winter Storm Fern Proved the Importance of Coal-Fueled Electricity Generation

Cross and Winyah coal plants provided over 80% of the electricity consumed in the S.C. Lowcountry during the Winter Storm Fern peak demand period (January 26 – February 4, 2026). Natural gas and solar generation are also shown in the chart below. Not shown: the 322 MW of nuclear generation from Santee-Cooper’s one-third share of V.C. Summer Nuclear Plant.

The chart above is the actual “Bulk Power Supply” as generated by SCPSA, which provides the wholesale power to Palmetto Electric. Note that over 80% is from coal generation. Also, note the small contribution of solar. Not shown is the 322 MW of nuclear generation from Dominion Energy.

The Net Zero Carbon Mandate and Rising Costs

The least-cost fuels for electricity generation are coal and nuclear. However, SCPSA and other S.C. utilities have been ordered by the S.C. Legislature to transition away from coal toward Net Zero Carbon. The path ahead is described in the Santee-Cooper Integrated Resource Plan (IRP).

As can be seen on the portfolio transition, the plan is to reduce coal from over 55% to about 23% by 2040. 

The S.C. Legislation to Increase Electricity Costs

South Carolina law (S.C. Code Ann. §58-37-40) directs the retirement of coal-fired generation:

S.C. General Assembly — H.3194 (Session 124, 2021–2022)

Santee-Cooper’s analysis demonstrated that the Net Zero CO₂ by 2050 portfolio would be higher in costs and involve more risk for customers than the Economically Optimized Portfolio. Several supplemental analyses were performed reflecting the retirement of the Winyah generating station by end of 2028 or 2030.

Understanding Your Electric Bill

The major component of electricity production cost is primary energy (fuel). When wholesale power costs rise, retail electric bills follow. For a Combined Cycle natural gas plant, fuel alone constitutes about 90% of production cost. If natural gas prices double, so does the cost of electricity. Coal is a low-cost, price-stable source of primary energy, benefiting all ratepayers.

Why Transitioning to Renewables Raises Electricity Costs

The Core Problem: Backup Power

When the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing, power must be supplied immediately by backup generation. In the U.S., that backup has primarily been natural gas. In some cases—Hawaii and New England—diesel, kerosene, and jet fuel have been used when other sources were unavailable.

Electricity must be generated the instant it is needed. Wind and sunshine may be free, but backup power is not. The charts below show world generation by fuel. Note the coal consumption of Asia compared to the U.S.

This shows the absurdity of the path to Net-Zero Carbon when the entire world coal consumption is considered. If America’s coal consumption went to zero, it would barely make a difference in total CO2 emissions.

Credit for the chart above goes to Mr. Mike Caravaggio who prepared and posted on LinkedIn.

Case Study: Hawaii — An Energy Island

Hawaii is not connected to the mainland grid, making it a telling example. In 2021, 76% of its generation fuel was diesel. Hawaii once had a 180 MW coal plant that produced its lowest-cost electricity—even with imported coal. After transitioning to renewables, diesel backup became dominant when the sun set or wind dropped. Because diesel is among the most expensive generation fuels, Hawaii now has the highest electricity rates of all 50 states.

Case Study: New England

States that have retired coal plants have experienced sharply escalating costs, including California, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, and Maine. During Winter Storm Fern, New England generated roughly one-third of its electricity from diesel for several days. Their plan to import Canadian hydropower failed when Canada needed its own capacity during extreme cold.

Electricity Costs by State

The pattern is clear: states with the least coal power tend to have the highest electricity costs.

The state of Tennessee for some reason was not included in the chart above. TN does in fact have some of the lowest electricity costs in the U.S. according to: https://findenergy.com/tn/ The low cost is attributed to a lot of old hydroelectric power, considerable nuclear and a still large coal fleet. TN average electricity cost is about $0.129/kWh.

Case Study: Germany

Germany began its coal transition in 2011 under the Energiewende policy. Once Europe’s strongest manufacturer, Germany has experienced de-industrialization driven by skyrocketing electricity costs—now approximately $0.33/kWh, even higher than Hawaii.

Dr. Lars Schernikau is an energy expert and knows a lot about European energy policies, including Germany. Here is a quote from Dr. Schernikau in the Engineering News:

Schernikau was bluntly pessimistic about the true financial viability of wind and solar energy on a grid scale.

“There is no way you can make honest money with wind and solar. It’s not possible. When I say honest money, I mean without somebody else’s money, because you are living off somebody’s subsidies, which is paid by taxpayers,” he said.

He illustrated this by pointing to the economic problems with high solarpenetration in markets such as Germany, where an oversupply of solar energy has led to a significant drop in prices. In May, for example, the price of solar energy in Germany fell by 50%, reducing the earnings of solar producers. Negative power price days are at an all time high in Germany and other countries, Schernikau pointed out.

The impact of high electricity costs on households was another area of concern. Schernikau cited a March report from the German government auditor Bundesnetzagentur, which revealed that energy poverty in Germany had risen to 25%, meaning one in four households is now classified as energy poor.

So, I would ask. Why is South Carolina following the same Net Zero path of Germany?

Natural Gas for Electric Power Generation

Intermittent sources like solar and wind must be backed up by dispatchable generation—gas turbines or reciprocating engines (RICE). The chart below shows a typical daily generation profile in California. Solar (yellow) is strong for about six hours; as the sun sets, Dispatchable power must ramp up sharply.

Here is the generation by fuel for the lower 48 states for the first 24 days of January 2026. Thanks again to Mike Caravaggio from EPRI for posting this on LinkedIn.

A reliable Grid should have a balanced generation portfolio. In my experience, 85% Dispatchable or Base load generation works well and has been proven.

A balanced generation portfolio works best with at least 85% dispatchable power generation capacity.

Fuel Price Stability: Coal vs. Natural Gas

Natural gas prices are volatile, especially during winter when home heating competes with power generation for pipeline capacity. 

A key point on the generation of electricity: The fuel cost is the single largest component of the operating dollar for the production of electricity. So, if much solar and wind is installed, then it must be backed up with Dispatchable electricity generation. Usually in the U.S., that fuel for Dispatchable, backup power is natural gas. As can be seen from the examples of New England, California, Hawaii, Germany and the UK, the cost of that backup fuel matters when retail electricity prices are compared.

The chart below compares natural gas prices (blue) with coal prices (black) since 1980.

Conclusions

  • Coal provides the fuel to generate reliable electricity at amongst the lowest cost in the world. This is based on actual results and actual rates, not on economic models or expert opinions.
  • Modern coal plants like Cross are clean; their ash is recycled for cement and sheetrock manufacture.
  • Nuclear is excellent but new construction takes a decade and costs tens of billions (Vogtle 3 & 4: 10 years, $30+ billion).
  • Natural gas already provides ~43% of U.S. electricity (2025)—a high share for a pipeline-delivered fuel. Coal plants balance price volatility and store weeks of fuel on-site, an intrinsic grid security advantage.
  • The author recommends the S.C. Legislature repeal the Net Zero Carbon law and allow SCPSA and AI Data Center developers to pursue new coal-fueled generation

Part 2 will follow and show some more reasons why wind and solar although using “Free” fuel, cost more.

Respectfully and very truly yours,

Dick Storm, March 11, 2026

The Importance of Coal, Part 2: Coal Power in the Rest of the World

Coal power in America remains important and I wrote on that last week. This is a followup to provide an overview of the importance of coal as a form of primary energy in the rest of the world. The key phrase is Primary Energy.

Ron Stein and Nancy Perlman wrote an excellent article on the importance of providing primary energy to the six billion people on the planet that are living in poverty. Lifting them from poverty requires energy, just as energy powered the citizens of countries living in the Developed world.

“In poor countries, millions of those in poverty die every year. 
From indoor air pollution from having to burn wood, charcoal, grass, and dung, because they don’t have natural gas, propane or electricity for cooking and heating. 
From bacteria and parasites in their water and food, because they don’t have electricity, water treatment or refrigeration. 
From malaria and other diseases, because their substandard clinics and hospitals lack electricity, clean water, sufficient vaccines and antibiotics, even window screens. “
 
It’s disheartening that the wealthier country governments have chosen electricity generation “winners,” i.e., wind and solar, to generate electricity, paid with taxpayer funds, to support the Government Mandates and Subsidies.”

How about India and China?

China did in fact lift millions from poverty since they entered the World Trade Organization and became the world’s leading country in manufacturing. One example is their use of enormous amounts of coal as the primary energy to produce aluminum. Before the year 2000 China was an insignificant producer of aluminum. Look what they did in 20 years.

How did China power their economy to become the world’s largest producer of aluminum, steel and most manufactured products in such a short time? They did it with coal power. Thomas Shepstone, Jr. and Duggan Flanigan also wrote about energy intensive aluminum production. Here is an overview of China’s energy production during this period of astounding industrial production growth. This chart below is from my July 2025 presentation to the Coal Institute.

China consumes over 50% of the world’s coal. They understand the sources of primary energy that are viable for affordable, Dispatchable and reliable electricity production, so does India. From the IER (Institute for Energy Research)

How about India, Germany and the UK?

From the Economic Times: India’s coal consumption could more than double ‍by mid-century before plunging ​sharply as the country shifts toward cleaner energy, ⁠long‑term projections published by government think-tank NITI Aayog show.

Germany’s path to Net Zero has created much loss of industry. Here are a few references:

WUWT on the Decline of German Chemical Industries due to High Energy Prices, and How Germany is Dismantling it’s Core, by Tilak Doshi.

German De-Industrialization post on the “Last Pipe” from Vallourec Factory.

Lars Shernikau’s blog post on the decline of German Industry due to missteps of Green Policies. Dr. Shernikau is a well respected author and world renowned energy expert.

Coal use in the world has steadily increased.

So if Coal Is Such an Obvious Source of Primary Energy, Why is the West Self Sabotaging Their Economies?

I provided a presentation to the ENERUM Energy Forum in Columbus in 2022 to ask this question. A similar presentation to Liberty University in 2023. I am glad to send those presentations. upon request.

Getting back to aluminum production, here is a graph of U.S. and China production. As America shut down many coal plants and electricity costs rose, China was building new coal plants to provide reasonable cost electricity to smelt aluminum in huge quantities. Many folks, including me believe that China Dumped aluminum on the International markets in lieu of counterfeiting U.S. currency. Note the rise of aluminum produced in China during the years 2004-2014 (from chart above). Both of these charts are from a presentation to the Delaware County Bar Association in 2016 to discuss energy, the economy and how it impacts the Real-Estate Market. Yes, I know that sounds abstract, but reasonable cost energy = jobs, especially for energy intensive industries such as aluminum smelting, then the jobs impact the Real-Estate market.

The Self-Sabotaging and excessive environmental laws of the U.S. have not only seriously (I hope not mortally) wounded the aluminum industry, but also steel and heavy manufacturing. Steel production by country is shown below. Why do western politicians continue to do their best to weaken their countries and force manufacturing overseas? It is not only the U.S. it is Australia, Germany the UK and more. President Trump is trying to correct the U.S. problem, but he has much opposition by the Democrats.

The west has been committing energy suicide. Here are links to several articles written by Professor Vaclav Smil, CO2 Coalition’s Gregory Whitestone and Ron Stein. Vaclav Smil for Fraser Institute, “Why Net Zero is Impractical and Unrealistic” and Scam of the Century: Ridding the World of Crude Oil Without a Replacement is Global Suicide”, by Ron Stein and Gregory Whitestone, July 2024. I have also written much with many credible other references on the Self-Sabotaging of the U.S. electric Grid. Here, here and here are three such articles.

Professor Samuele Furfari whom I admire and follow, has written much on the fallacy of hydrogen, wind and solar. Here is a short article he wrote for the CO2 Coalition. Here is an excerpt:

Australia

Two other Australian sources for up to date enelectricity generation by source are Rafe Champion and Ben Beattie. I thank them for their articles, links and information. Here below is the Australian Grid generation by fuel for Feb. 22, 2026. Note that it is over 50 % coal. (at one point 38.5% Black coal and 13.2% Brown Coal) Solar and wind were producing 45% at this same moment. Solar does very well during the sunshiny 6 hours or so of the day and wind does well when the wind is blowing, but the voltage control, base load, sudden increased demand requirements (like turning on a 150 MW electric furnace in a steel mill). Also, the rotational inertia and Grid stability are provided by the coal and gas plants.

Numerous references are included at the end from Rafe Champion, PA Pundits and others on the problems with wind and solar. Although electricity generation is complicated, it is not rocket science. If the politicians would do just a little bit of reading and research and maybe even ask folks like us that do understand, they could make right decisions. However, across the west politicians insist on weakening their countries. Just like the U.S. presidents Obama and Biden (before President Trump began the Herculean job of correcting anti-American Energy policy) and the German and UK politicians. Of course, even many Bureaucrats and state Legislatures to this day, are still stuck on the destructive path of Net Zero Carbon. Even my Conservative (Red) state of South Carolina. Here is a quote From the Santee-Cooper IRP: “As required by S.C. Code Ann. §58-37-40(A)(4)(c), Santee Cooper has evaluated a Net Zero CO2

This reminds me of Charlie Reese’s last column on how a minority of legislators and judges can force their Ideology on the citizens. Off topic but voter energy education and voter turnout needs to be improved. As I said, we even have misguided voters and politicians in the deep red state of South Carolina. We have got to improve the energy IQ of the voters.

Recent Articles to Support Building New Coal Power Generation Plants

Rather than repeat my same message, here are recent articles I have written in an attempt to explain the case for new coal plants, including two articles on the need to build new coal plants based on coal being the default source of primary energy. The default source of primary energy because the electricity growth is expected to out pace the production of gas turbines to provide for all new generation and nuclear generation, although a very good approach, will take a decade or more to provide the needed electricity generation capacity.

  1. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/
  2. Reality of Building 32,000 MW of New Generation Capacity/Year. Solutions; Build New Coal Plants Now!,  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  3. Power for the U.S.A. Reality of Building 32,000 MW each year: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  4. Power for the U.S.A. Advantages of Coal Power, Dec. 21, 2025: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/12/21/advantages-of-coal-fuel-for-electricity-generation/
  5. 100 Quadrillion BTUs and Why Coal Should be Included in the Primary Energy Portfolio: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/01/28/one-hundred-twenty-quadrillion-btus-and-the-need-for-coal-to-provide-at-least-20-quads-of-americas-primary-energy-part-l/
  6. Dick Storm Presentation to EPRI on the Importance of Applying the Fundamentals for Achievement of the Best Thermal Performance, Feb. 8, 2026: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/02/08/the-importance-of-coal-thermal-performance-considerations-for-heat-rate-and-resiliency/
  7. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm article on Obtaining Best Performance from Coal Plants, Feb. 2026:  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal

Conclusions

Wind and Solar are the Highest Cost Power and Cannot Meet Demand, they are a risk to national security and when a region exceeds 30% renewables and the electricity rates are the highest

More Dispatchable Bulk Power Plants Need to be Built

Coal, Gas and Nuclear Plants provide the lowest cost, most reliable Power over the long term

States and Countries on Path to Net-Zero Carbon are Paying a high price

Natural Gas Prices will likely rise in the future

Electricity prices will rise with fuel cost as well as from inflation of components and construction costs. 

Production prices of electricity will follow fuel cost

A Balanced Generation portfolio is Beneficial as a Hedge Against Fuel Cost Volatility

America should learn from the experiences of Germany, CA, Hawaii, CT, MA, ME, NH, NJ and other states with high electricity costs

States and countries that have shut down coal plants have experienced increased electricity production costs. This is not a forecast, this is fact

Thank you for reading and

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, February 22, 2026

References and articles for further research:

  1. America Out Loud, article: Net-Zero is NOT Affordable by the 6 Billion Living in Poverty: https://www.americaoutloud.news/net-zero-is-not-affordable-by-the-6-billion-living-in-poverty/
  2. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  3. Duggan Flanigan and Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr. on the energy intensive production of aluminum: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/trump-is-saving-american-aluminum?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewer
  4. The importance of Aluminum by the Economic Policy Institute, 2021: https://www.epi.org/publication/aluminum-producing-and-consuming-industries-have-thrived-under-u-s-section-232-import-measures/
  5. The Aluminum Association: https://www.aluminum.org/PowerUp
  6. Dick Storm Blog post, “Wake Up Americans!” Sept. 21, 2023:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/09/20/please-wake-up-america-your-energy-and-electricity-generation-reliability-are-at-risk/
  7. Energy and Economic Prosperity, Talk to Delaware County Bar Association, July 2016: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2016/07/25/energy-and-economic-prosperity-my-thoughts-dick-storm/
  8. Thomas Shepstone Published Coal Institute presentation by Dick Storm, July 20, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-unpopular-but-hard-truths-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  9. Columbus, Ohio Energy Forum, ENERUM, 2022, Dick Storm presentation: Dick Storm Presentation to Columbus Energy Forum, Columbus, Ohio August 2022: : https://www.linkedin.com/posts/richard-storm-00557810_presentation-and-speakers-notes-from-august-activity-7068650158862827520-B-_W?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  10. Institute for Energy Research, 2023: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/fossil-fuels/coal/china-and-india-burn-record-amounts-of-coal/
  11. German De-Industrialization post on the “Last Pipe” from Vallourec Factory: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-7112422447580082176-MMm3?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  12. “Why Net Zero is Impractical and Unrealistic”: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/studies/halfway-between-kyoto-and-2050
  13. Scam of the Century, Ridding the World of Crude Oil Without a Replacement is Global Suicide”, by Ron Stein and Gregory Whitestone, July 2024: https://www.americaoutloud.news/scam-of-the-century-ridding-the-world-of-crude-oil-without-a-replacement-is-global-suicide/
  14. Are You Worried about the Future of America? Jan. 21, 2021 Thoughts on Energy Policies, Industrial and Economic Growth: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/01/21/are-you-worried-about-the-future-of-america/
  15. U.S. War on Carbon Accomplishes Two Things, Weakens America, Enriches China, Jan. 30, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/01/30/us-war-on-carbon-accomplishes-two-things/
  16. Blue Planet in Green Shackles, What is Endangered, Climate or Freedom”: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-nD
  17. Dick Storm presentation to the Coal Institute, July 2025, Myrtle Beach, SC. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr.: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-unpopular-but-hard-truths-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  18. Australia Grid, Real Time: https://explore.openelectricity.org.au/energy/nem/?range=3d&interval=5m&view=discrete-time&group=Detailed
  19. WUWT on Power in the West by David Wojick: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/08/12/electric-power-fantasies-collide-out-west/
  20. Dr. Samule Furfari on Energy Additions, Not a Transition, Fossil Fuels are the Bedrock of Progress, July 2025: https://co2coalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/2025-07-Energy-Addition-Not-Transition-Fossil-Fuels-Remain-the-Bedrock-of-Progress.pdf
  21. The Very Real Costs of the War on Coal, Real Clear Energy, July 2025: https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2025/07/31/the_very_real_human_impact_of_coal_closures_1125990.html
  22. The Coming Electricity Reliability Crisis and the Importance of Coal, Sept. 12, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/09/12/the-electricity-reliability-crisis-and-the-importance-of-american-coal/
  23. The Kingdom of Heaven Runs on Righteousness, The Kingdom of Earth Runs on Energy, Oct. 3, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/10/03/heaven-runs-on-righteousness-earth-runs-on-energy/
  24. Charley Reese’s Last Column, “545 vs. 300,000,000 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/11/27/charley-reeses-last-column-a-classic-commentary-written-over-twenty-years-ago/
  25. Why is Western Civilization Self Sabotaging the Primary Energy that Provides 80% of the fuel for America’s Life-Blood of Reliable Electricity, with the War on Carbon?.     : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/12/17/why-is-western-civilization-self-sabotaging-the-primary-energy-sources-that-provide-80-of-the-fuel-for-americas-life-blood-of-reliable-electricity-with-the-war-on-carbon/
  26. Musings on the Self-Sabotaging Energy Policies and a Reminder of the History of the Rise and Fall of Nations:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/01/13/musings-on-self-sabotaging-energy-policies-and-a-reminder-of-the-history-of-the-rise-and-fall-of-nations/
  27. The EPA “Endangerment Finding” and why it Needs to Go, Feb. 2, 2025: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-1ZW
  28. The SWAMP MONSTER vs. 300 Million Americans, Feb. 21, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/21/the-swamp-monster-vs-the-best-interests-of-the-united-states-of-america/
  29. Thomas J. Shepstone Substack on Dick Storm’s “Primer on How to Ensure Electricity Security (and How to Destroy It)”:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/a-primer-on-how-to-ensure-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  30. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  31. Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  32. Bjorn Lomberg on the High Cost of Solar and Wind, Climate Change Dispatch, Jan. 2, 2025: https://climatechangedispatch.com/wind-solar-hidden-truth-behind-rising-electric-bills/
  33. Frazer Institute, “Hot Air, Cold Truths, Bjorn Lomberg, March 2025: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/hot-air-and-cold-truths-bjorn-lomborg
  34. Delaware County Insider, Wind and Solar are Expensive, Bjorn Lomberg, May 24,  2024: https://delawarevalleyjournal.com/lomborg-the-true-cost-of-wind-and-solar-energy/
  35. Yahoo Finance and National Post, March 2025, Bjorn Lomberg, Wind and Solar are Expensive: https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/bjorn-lomborg-solar-wind-power-100008520.html
  36. Alabama Attorney General is amongst 22 states in appeal to return to coal for power generation revival of the Grid: https://gulfcoastmedia.com/stories/alabama-attorney-general-calls-for-reviving-americas-energy-grid-with-coal,257548?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0XeLob6rYc5WaBBtSyuB7vHctTdzVhTJxJZ96bExtALJBFoqUPAJPKaY0_aem_8TNpNEKQSIdjNrJTJeBF8Q#//
  37. Life Powered article on the Unreliability of Wind & Solar in Texas, March 29, 2025: https://lifepowered.org/reliability-standards-to-reduce-the-cost-of-wind-and-solar-volatility-in-texas/
  38. Joanne Nova on Coal Plant Approvals of the world: https://joannenova.com.au/2025/06/not-dying-global-approvals-of-coal-plants-back-up-to-2015-high/
  39. Vijay Jayaraj on the importance of energy to Developing countries: https://californiaglobe.com/fr/the-lethal-fog-of-clean-air-hypocrisy/
  40. Lars Schernikau, “Unpopular Truths” Newsletter on the decline of German Industry due to failed energy policies: https://sh1.sendinblue.com/3gvdip76f0lpfe.html?t=1744529565190  
  41. PA Pundits on Offshore Wind and National Security, Feb. 22, 2026: https://papundits.wordpress.com/2026/02/22/new-book-explores-how-offshore-wind-undermines-national-security/#like-287902
  42. Future Coal 2025: https://www.futurecoal.org/energy-security-takes-centre-stage-as-global-coal-demand-hits-record-high-in-2025/
  43.  EIA on rising electric prices: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67106&utm_medium=email
  44. WUWT on the Decline of German Chemical Industries due to High Energy Prices, Feb. 4, 2025: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/02/04/germanys-chemical-reckoning-how-europe-is-dismantling-its-industrial-core/
  45. Thomas Shepstone and Robert Bradley, Feb. 4, 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/tell-republican-rino-we-dont-need?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  46. Rafe Champion Substack on Wind Droughts in Australia:
    https://rafechampion.substack.com/p/defusing-the-wind-drought-trap

The Importance of Coal: Thermal Performance Considerations for Heat Rate and Resiliency

The thermal performance of the existing coal fleet can be improved by applying proven and reasonable cost mechanical tuning solutions. Coal power generation has many advantages when done with excellence in operations and maintenance. This article is based on my presentation to the EPRI Heat-Rate Conference last week and it is written for experienced electric power generation professionals, thus this is somewhat technical. The purpose is to show both the importance of coal power and to highlight some of the opportunities to improve coal plant thermal performance.

First, Apply the Fundamentals!

Our approach to coal plant performance improvement has always been: First apply the fundamentals which we refer to as the 13 Essentials for Optimum Combustion and the 22 Boiler Controllable Heat-Rate Variables. More on these later. After these have been applied, then consider modifications and upgrades of bottlenecking components.

The charts of coal use in the world below highlight the absolute importance of coal power as a major source of primary energy. Paraphrasing Mark Twain’s comment on seeing his Obituary, and applying it to coal: “The reporting of the demise of coal has been greatly exaggerated”...

Coal Remains Vital as a Source of American Primary Energy

Some of us nuts and bolts practical engineers knew the importance for coal fuel to meet the demand of last week’s winter storm. The U.S. Grid Dashboard helped document that need. However, this seems new to many academics and government policy makers.

In fact, here is the U.S. electricity generation by fuel for January 30th. Note that coal is shown generating 128,526 MW. This is about 22% of the total generation. During this cold period, this is a very important 22% of Dispatchable and affordable generation.

Coal powered well over 60% of the low country of South Carolina last week. To be fair, SCPSA owns about 322 MW of Summer nuclear plant and that power is not shown on the display below. Like many areas of the U.S. coal, nuclear and gas provided over 80% of the total electricity generation.

The chart below is a screenshot of MISOENERGY. For this region, coal was over 39% during winter storm Fern.

Coal literally saved the Grid during winter storm Fern. And, nearly all of the expert forecasts of electricity Demand show about 100,000 MW of new generation needed by 2030. So, my question is, why aren’t new base load coal plants under construction right now?

The charts above show the importance of coal as recent as last week. However, the Deep State Bureaucrats, NGOs. state Legislatures (including red states like S.C.) and much of the public still resist facing the energy reality that coal offers many advantages for at least the next two decades. Well, let’s move on to getting the best performance from the existing coal fleet by first, applying the fundamentals!

Getting the Inputs Right

Achieving excellence in operating a coal plant takes hard work and vigilance of paying attention to the details. Rankine plants are tough, resilient and forgiving but when attention is paid to the details it can make a huge difference in heat rate. Here is a typical spread of plant efficiencies as performed by an NETL study. 

This is old timey data but, in my experience, it represents the spread between the Best Run and those that are run with Mediocrity. The chart below is from Electric Light and Power, Nov./Dec. 2014. This shows the top 20 Rankine Cycle coal plans for the year 2013. Net Heat-Rate for that year. Excellence in O&M as well as design. Notice, Turk Plant at the top of the list. More on Turk later.

I  coauthored an article in POWER Magazine with Dr. Robert Peltier entitled, “How Stealth Losses in Combustion Can Lower Efficiency”. This article was based on experiences and proven results. It has been shown that by excellence in O&M, Heat-Rates can be influenced by as much as 1,200 BTU/kWh. Later a couple examples will be shown where the magnitude of 500 BTUs/kWh in Heat-Rate improvements were achieved by applying the 13 Essentials and the 22 Boiler Controllable Variables. This was accomplished by testing to identify the opportunities and then correcting them. Most of the improvements have been through optimizing primary airflow, improving coal fineness, correcting air in-leakage and reducing upper furnace exit gas temperatures (FEGT). The reduced FEGT then improves thermal performance by reducing S.H. and R.H. de-superheating spray water flow and reducing cycle losses from soot blowing.

Getting the Inputs Right!

The first step to optimizing combustion and heat rate, is to apply the 13 Essentials. All 13 are important, but nine of the 13 are pulverizer, fuel and fuel line related.  This list of 13 essentials is the best and most important single document for optimizing combustion on a large PC Fired Utility Boiler. I am dead serious. These are NOT optional for a pulverized coal fueled boiler.

Some of the most common opportunities for improvement that we have found and then corrected for mechanical tuning with great results are:

  • Pulverized coal fineness
  • High Primary Airflow
  • High FEGT due to secondary combustion
  • Air In-Leakage
  • Air Heater Leakage
  • Fuel line imbalance
  • Secondary air imbalance
  • Burner tuning optimization

I know that there are other combustion tuning and controls manufacturers believe that airflow management to different zones of the furnace is not important, However, it is our experience that airflow management is in fact, crucial. We know from experience that these do work very well and where we have implemented the 13 Essentials they have always created a positive result for improved efficiency, reduced slagging, less tube metal overheating, best NOx performance, improved ESP (Electrostatic Precipitator) performance and more.

The correction of these individual items then complement each other to provide synergy which compounds the improvements. Such as: Reducing high primary airflows will usually result in better fineness, lower flyash carbon in ash losses, reduced upper furnace gas temperatures (FEGT), reduced sootblowing, less de-superheating spray water flows and reduced dry gas losses as a result of lowered tempering air flows. When all 13 Essentials have been earnestly applied and the O&M Team bought in on constantly maintaining them with vigilance, good RESULTS have been achieved. I will provide a couple examples later in this discussion.

The potential improvements and the synergism between them is shown on the chart below to show how about 600 BTUs/kWh in Heat-Rate can be achieved by focusing on boiler and combustion optimization. The data and examples shown have been proven in full size coal power plants and in at least one complete Utility that adopted the approach over a several year period.

Here is a figure which shows several of the most important “Essentials” of optimum combustion. Key to best coal fineness, best airheater “X” Ratio, fuel balance and good reliability is, a repeatable and optimized Primary air curve. An example of a preferred primary airflow ramp is shown below.

Pulverizer performance is important and it has been our experience, that unless pulverizers are undersized, the fineness and fuel distribution can be corrected to within the parameters of 75% passing 200 mesh and 1.8 #air/#fuel and +/- 10% Fuel line balance. Truly, the pulverizers are the heart of a PC fired boiler.

One of the simplest tests to ascertain whether high carbon in ash is due to combustion issues or pulverizer performance is to run a three-part flyash carbon in ash test. First, obtain a representative ash sample and pass a measured quantity through a 200 mesh sieve. Then measure the LOI (Loss on Ignition) of the coarse and fine particles. If most of the carbon loss is in the coarse particles, then the high loss due to carbon in ash is pulverizer performance related. If high LOI in the fine particles, then fuel balancing, air balancing or high post combustion air in-leakage is the problem. I am not one to promote shortcuts, but this is an easy test to conduct and it is very informative with regard to combustion performance and pulverizer performance. However, the flyash sample MUST be Representative!

Stealth Heat-Rate Losses

Stealth heat rate losses are those losses in Rankine Cycle efficiency due to controllable losses, some are located at the Boiler Island. Here is a list of 22 Controllable Losses that are controllable by optimization of the steam generator and combustion system performance.

Application of these practical steps have been accomplished on numerous single units and on several total utility systems. All Utility boiler furnace exit gas temperatures should be in the range of 2,150 degrees F. to 2,,300 degrees F. Often, the first indication of a problem is in the use of an HVT probe with a 310 ss radiation shield and the metal and thermocouple literally melt. The melting temperature of 310 ss is about 2,900 degrees F.  The pre-requisite for achieving good furnace performance is to apply the 13 Essentials as covered above and when the are, lower FEGT’s are attainable. (FEGT=Furnace Exit Gas Temperature)

The stealth losses compound together because of poor furnace combustion, this leads to flame quenching, overheated S.H. and R.H. tube metals, high S.H. and R.H. spray water flows, higher exit gas loss, slagging and fouling, increased draft loss, increased sootblower operation and consequent cycle steam losses, increased fan horsepower and carbon in ash losses. These seemingly small, individual issues when corrected, compound to create significant heat rate improvements as will be shown later. Never underestimate the adverse impact of poor pulverizer performance on overall unit Heat-Rate!

High primary airflow contributes to poor coal fineness, higher FEGT, increased NOx, high metal temperatures in the S.H. and R.H., requires increased soot blower operation, fouls the convection pass, air heater and SCR and much more. High primary airflows are very commonly found by our test teams. One of the most frequent opportunities for improvement.

Non-optimized combustion then creates Rankine cycle Thermodynamic losses through increased de-superheating water spray flows. The R.H. sprays are particularly harmful to Heat-Rate.

Case Studies of Large Utility Steam Generator Successes

Here is an example of a 450 MW 2400 psi/1000/1000 unit which has a design best heat rate of about 9,200 Btus/kWh. In this case study the 13 essentials were applied but these alone did not correct the high FEGT. To correct secondary air imbalances windbox baffles and perforated plates were installed in the burner inlets. These secondary airflow system changes corrected secondary air maldistribution. The result was about a 300-500 Btu/kWh heat rate improvement

However, the largest economic gain came from improved fuel flexibility where lower cost coal with a lower fusion temperature could be burned and this provided better generation economics and increased load factor operation, which also helped to achieve a better heat rate from the increased operational hours at higher loads.

The next case study is a 600 MW class 2400/1000/1000 unit in northern Kentucky. The heat rate was about 1,000 Btu above achievable. Again, first step was the application of the 13 essentials for combustion optimization. But also, a very effective team effort was organized by the plant manager to place priority on all of the heat rate factors on the steam generator and all of the balance of plant. Including the condenser cleaning and cooling tower fill corrections.

The results of the coordinated efforts of the operations and maintenance team plus the heat-rate engineer and Storm Technologies testing, resulted in a step change in heat rate improvement of about 800 Btus/kWh. The primary pre-requisite for this success was TEAMWORK! All of the O&M Team bought in on the approach and the end result was extremely gratifying to all.

The main factors in this unit’s success were: Pulverizer optimization, fuel balancing, optimized primary airflow program (reduced PA flows), secondary air balancing, correcting air in leakage, correction of cooling tower fill problems, reducing secondary combustion, reduced high spray flows, reduced soot blower operation, reduced air preheater leakage and reduced system losses. 

The typical opportunities that are found are worth about 600 Btus/kWh in heat rate improvement. Here is a breakdown of where these opportunities are typically found:

A frequently found opportunity is air in-leakage. Especially on older boilers.  Any air that enters the boiler setting without passing through the air preheater, constitutes a Dry Gas Loss. Also, if it is large enough, can contribute to secondary combustion due to low furnace oxygen content, upper furnace secondary combustion and high FEGT’s. 

The air preheater is the last heat trap on 99% of all the coal plants we have worked. Improving the performance or ultimately replacing the air preheaters with newer, reduced leakage and higher efficiency preheaters can drastically improve overall unit performance.

For older plants and especially those that have poor performing air preheaters such as the Rothemuhle type, then installing an upgraded new air preheater can provide a step change in improved performance. 
It is my hope that New Source Review and any other restrictive Regulations against modifications to improve performance are gone forever. 

Another upgrade option is to change the superheater and/or Reheater surface areas for optimum steam temperatures and overall performance. Also, possible changes in tube lane spacing, sootblower lane erosion protection and upgraded higher alloy tubing.

America’s last new coal plants went into service over a dozen years ago. Three of the newest and highest efficiency units are Duke’s Cliffside, AEP’s Turk and Kansas City Gas and Electric’sIatan. All of these are supercritical and capable of heat rates of about 8,300-9,000 Btus/kWh. About 38-41% thermal efficiency. https://www.powermag.com/plant-of-the-yearkcpls-iatan-2-earns-powers-highest-honor/
The Europeans, Japanese and Americans advanced the state of the art for Rankine cycle plants to approach 42% thermal efficiency. These improvements were in steam turbines, steam generator design and metallurgy. Then, we stopped building coal plants. The Chinese, on the other hand, had the advantage of applying all of the improvements that the west had achieved and then they kept on working to advance the state of the art even further. Indeed they have approached 50% thermal efficiency with their coal plant designs.  However, the Chinese plant Heat-Rates are reported on a fuel LHV basis. To be a fair comparison to the Best units in America, such as Turk or Cliffside the efficiencies should be based on the fuel HHV. These Chinese units (and Turk and Cliffside)  have been featured in Power Magazine.

The American advancement of coal plant design in the modern age, for the best thermal efficiency possible, began with the Eddystone Unit # 1 designed in the 1950’s.

Quest for Improved Thermal Efficiency

In my personal experiences, I began my career in the power industry in 1962. This is when Philadelphia Electric’s Eddystone Station was new. Eddystone started up in 1960. At that time, this was the most efficient power plant in the world. Steam conditions were at throttle pres. 5,000 psi 1,250 degree Superheat and two stages of Reheating at 1,050 degrees F. The design Heat-Rate from 1950’s technology was 8230 Btu/kWh or 41% thermal efficiency.  Since that time, America’s coal fleet has held pretty steady for the “Best” coal plants. Eddystone was the “Best” in 1960 at 41% Thermal efficiency. The most recent U.S. Ultra-supercritical plants, Turk, Cliffside and Iatan are capable of about the same efficiency as Eddystone was. However, I should mention that today’s clean coal plants use much more auxiliary power to drive the Flue Gas Cleanup equipment. FGD, SCR, ESP’s, Baghouses etc. These were not yet invented when Eddystone started up and therefore were not installed at Eddystone. For new plants such as Turk to achieve similar thermal performance with the backend environmental cleanup gear represents a true advancement in the state of the art.

The above chart shows the Thermal Efficiency progress of heat engines, since the days of Edison, Tesla and Westinghouse. As can be seen on the chart, the U.S. gas turbine fleet has progressed amazingly well and has reached design capabilities of over 60% thermal efficiency.

At the end of my EPRI presentation I showed the POWER Magazine information on the Chinese Pingsham, Phase ll coal plant that is advertised as being nearly 50% efficient. This is based on steam conditions of 4,500 psi 1100 degrees F. steam temperatures with two stages of Reheat at 1100 degrees F. (close to Eddystone #1)
The EPRI Heat-Rate Conference is a technical meeting and the people in attendance are very sharp. It was quickly pointed out that the efficiency attributed to Pingsham ll of 49+% is based on fuel LHV and not HHV. Thus, the performance of Pingsham is just a couple points above the AEP Turk Plant in Arkansas. The John Turk Ultra-Supercritical coal plant went into operation in 2012 and is about 39% efficient. The steam conditions at Turk are: 3500psi throttle, 1100 degree S.H. and 1100 degree Reheat. Design Heat-Rate of Turk is 8730 Btus/kWh (39% Thermal efficiency)

My point is, the Chinese have taken advantage of all of the engineering and operational experiences gained in the U.S. and Europe and built on these developments, experiences and knowledge to provide further advancements. Even though modest, the newest Chinese coal plants are in-fact more efficient than the U.S. newest coal plants. The Turk coal plant was started up in 2012 and only one other since then.  Duke Cliffside #6, 2013, which is similar overall efficiency as Turk. Another outstanding coal plant of high efficiency, built around the same time is the Prairie States Plant in Illinois.
Another point is the fact that the EPA restricted efficiency improvements for about 30 years. That is, if a U.S. coal plant implemented improvements to increase efficiency, they would be severely penalized. Now, with an energy friendly administration, the EPA “New Source Review” Rule, should not be a deterrent to implementing performance and even capacity improvements. In my view, the existing U.S. coal fleet should be capable of being upgraded in capacity, reliability, fuel flexibility and efficiency. In my Power Magazine article published in 2009, I showed several examples of plants that could be improved with new S.H. surfaces, larger fans, upgraded pulverizers and modifications such as these. The word “Upgrade” is or at least should not, be a dirty word.

The Demise of Coal Has Been Drastically Exaggerated

Borrowing Mark Twain’s quote on the premature posting of his obituary, coal is needed, it is being widely utilized and it will not be easily replaced as a form of primary energy. Here below is a chart of electricity generation 2000-2023 from the G-20 nations presented by EPRI. Electricity generation from all fuels has steadily increased and will accelerate the electricity growth during the next 20 years.

As mentioned above, the U.S. worked hard at advancing thermal power generation efficiency. Gas turbines and combined cycle plants have made great progress. However, the war on coal stopped American progress for improving coal plant efficiency which effectively stopped in 2012. On the other hand, China continued to improve coal plant efficiency. Here below is one example of applied excellence in obtaining coal plant efficiency. I should point out that the 49+% Thermal Efficiency is based on the fuel LHV. Still, a commendable effort and results to achieve overall thermal performance in the high 40’s% is the Best I am aware of.

Coal: America’s Treasure of Primary Energy, Why Not Use it?

Coal power has at least a dozen solid advantages for electricity generation. Winter Storm Fern during the week of January 30, 2026 proved the importance and resiliency of coal plants. Even older plants that have not had the optimal maintenance once practiced. For reference, here is my list of the top dozen reasons that coal power is important.

Another important reason for new coal plants is that to provide the future demand in electricity growth, it is the most viable sources of primary energy to be utilized. I wrote on this before here and here. The electricity growth forecasts all show increases of about 100 GW needed by 2030 and about 800 GW by 2050. This is a lot of power and not easily built in 25 years. For example, the Roxboro coal generating station is four units and is capable of about 2400 MW when it is in top condition. Here is a photo of Roxboro Generating Plant. The first unit started up in 1966 and the newest one about 14 years later. Over 16 years of duration from the first contract signing till the 4th and last unit became commercial. Picture building 40 plants like this in four years to achieve the needed 100 GW of new Dispatchable generation by 2030. We can hope and wish. Sadly, the limitations of the Supply-Chain of manufactured components and craftspersons make this an impossible task today.

So, what are the alternatives? Here is my view of what it will take. Nuclear is loved by everyone today. However, it took Southern Company about ten years to build Vogtle 3&4 which is about 2,200 MW of new Base Load capacity. This is a great plant, now the largest nuclear plant in the U.S., but building 14 of these each year just doesn’t seem plausible.

Conclusions

Thank you for reading this. There are numerous additional articles listed below in the references.

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, Feb. 7, 2026

1. POWER Magazine article on “Correcting Stealth Losses in Large Coal Power Stations”: https://www.powermag.com/how-stealth-combustion-losses-lower-plant-efficiency-part-1-the-problem

2. Power Magazine, To Optimize Performance, Begin at the Pulverizers: https://www.powermag.com/to-optimize-performance-begin-at-the-pulverizers/

3. Power Magazine, Finessing Fuel Fineness: https://www.powermag.com/finessing-fuel-fineness/

4. Power Magazine, Managing Airflow to Optimize Performance:  https://www.powermag.com/managing-air-to-improve-combustion-efficiency/

5. Power Magazine, To Optimize Performance, Begin at the Pulverizers: https://www.powermag.com/to-optimize-performance-begin-at-the-pulverizers/

6. POWER Magazine, “What if New Source Review Was Repealed”: https://www.powermag.com/what-if-new-source-review-were-repealed/

7. Reasons Why New Coal Plants Should be Built in America: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/01/28/one-hundred-twenty-quadrillion-btus-and-the-need-for-coal-to-provide-at-least-20-quads-of-americas-primary-energy-part-l/

8. Dick Storm blog on the advantages of Coal Power: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/12/21/advantages-of-coal-fuel-for-electricity-generation/

9. Master Resource Blog: https://www.masterresource.org/heartland-institute/joe-bast-nyt-1999/

10. POWER Magazine article on Pingsham ll : https://www.powermag.com/chinas-pingshan-phase-ii-sets-new-bar-as-worlds-most-efficient-coal-power-plant/

11. ASME Engineering Milestone Historical review of Eddystone #1 325 MW Ultra-supercritical Power plant: https://www.asme.org/wwwasmeorg/media/resourcefiles/aboutasme/who%20we%20are/engineering%20history/landmarks/226-eddystone-station-unit.pdf

12. SWEPCO Fact Sheet on John Turk Plant: https://www.swepco.com/lib/docs/community/projects/TurkPowerPlantFactSheetrev3-21-13v3.pdf

13. POWER Magazine article on John Turk Coal Plant, 2013: https://www.powermag.com/aeps-john-w-turk-jr-power-plant-earns-powers-highest-honor/

14. POWER Magazine article on Iatan #2 Coal Plant, 2011: https://www.powermag.com/plant-of-the-yearkcpls-iatan-2-earns-powers-highest-honor/

15. POWER Magazine article on Duke Energy Cliffside Coal Plant:  https://www.powermag.com/cliffside-steam-station-unit-6-cliffside-north-carolina/

16. POWER Magazine, Top Plant, Prairie State Top Plant 2013: https://www.powermag.com/prairie-state-energy-campus-washington-county-illinois/

17 . Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack which Published article on the Enormity of 100 Quadrillion BTUshttps://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-enormity-of-100-quadrillion-btus?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

18. Stu Turley, Energy News beat on Grid Risks, Feb. , 2026https://theenergynewsbeat.substack.com/cp/186686693

19. EPA New Source Review settlements: https://www.gem.wiki/EPA_Coal_Plant_Settlements

20. EPA Settlements on NSR violations by WEPCO 2003: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/wisconsin-electric-power-company-wepco-clean-air-act-civil-settlement 

21. Dissertation on the Sierra Club Success of Beyond Coal Campaign 2020: https://www.proquest.com/openview/b734be1b4fa402463fbb2ee03a7993e5/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y

22. Inside the War on Coal Politico, The Agenda 2015: https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2015/05/inside-war-on-coal-000002/

One Hundred Twenty Quadrillion BTUs and The Need for Coal to Provide at Least 20 Quads of America’s Primary Energy-Part 1

Coal fuel should be included in the future electricity generation portfolio based on the laws of physics, available forms of primary energy, proven economics of electric power generation and the proven track record of coal power for providing reliable, dispatchable and affordable electricity generation. The CO2 Coalition’s Angela Wheeler interviewed me for the CO2 Coalitions Podcast, “Climate De-Brief” and here are my views of the absurd anti-American energy policies, many of which are still strangling President Trump’s path to restoring America’s Greatness. Energy is, in fact, The LifeBlood of Our Economy.

Part 1:
https://youtu.be/LYcJFIhxTe0?si=eyJwQcYy7Cruwkib
Part 2:
https://youtu.be/GrmXdpNGiUw?si=hi_Cr0EfeZICxPzI

Coal as an Important Source of Primary Energy

This article will attempt to show some of the reasons why based on the merits of coal why it should be increased as in the portfolio of reliable sources of primary energy.
Speaking of BTUs, I would like to start with describing the potential sources of the primary energy America needs and is using now to supply 100 quadrillion BTUs of primary energy.

Back to Basics: Let’s Look at the Available Sources of Primary Energy

From a primary energy viewpoint, America has used right at 100 quadrillion BTUs of energy each year since about the year 2000. 

This includes all forms of energy including oil, gas, coal, nuclear and renewables. As more AI Data Centers are built, more manufacturing is reshored, more EVs placed on the highways and greater electrification is transitioned across the economy, the demand for total primary energy is expected to increase. Coal is the most practical, achievable and available addition to provide 10-30 quadrillion BTUs more per annum of growing primary energy supply. Do you remember the phrase from a couple years ago, “Electrify Everything”? Let’s get back to the basics of Primary energy and then look at the incredibly huge contribution of conventional fuels. Also, the diminutive contribution of wind and solar.

Conventional forms of energy, that is those forms of energy we have depended on for the last hundred years, still provide well over 90% of the Primary energy that we need for our economy to thrive and to power our lives.

The Enormity of 100 Quadrillion BTUs

The statistics of energy use, fuel sources, electricity generation, plant efficiencies and much more are well understood by people who read this. However, outside of our energy professional’s network there are millions of Americans that have low energy IQ’s. Some of the low energy IQ individuals create national energy policy. As a result of indoctrination by renewable energy proponents many Americans believe that wind and solar can replace coal, gas and yes, even nuclear. 
 
The public in general, has a very weak understanding of the generation of electricity and how it is managed. Therefore, I thought I would describe in understandable terms; primary energy, electricity and the enormity of 100 Quadrillion BTUs. Perhaps this will reach people and politicians that are otherwise unaware of the magnitude of the primary energy supplied by conventional forms of energy which we absolutely need to power our lives.

Reliable, Dispatchable and affordable Electric power generation is the Life-Blood of any country’s economy. The source of most of the electric power generation for most of the industrialized world since the Industrial Revolution has been Thermal Power generation. Even in the western countries that have attempted to transition to carbon free sources of electric power generation, thermal power continues to dominate. For the year 2024 about 76% of the electric power production was from thermal power. The primary energy of over 90 quadrillion BTUs was provided by coal, gas, nuclear, oil and Biomass.  

One of the advantages of Thermal generation is just about all forms of Thermal power are dispatchable on demand. Gas turbines and Reciprocating gas engines obviously respond faster than a pulverized coal or nuclear unit, but most of the thermal power plants are in fact, dispatchable. 

The demand for electricity is growing. The quantity of growth in the future in debatable however, most experts agree, electricity demand is growing and U.S. growth may require as much as 100 GW of new generation by 2030 and 800 GW of new generation by 2040. Limited battery backup is available for intermittent renewables. Proven sources of dependable, affordable and dispatchable power are needed for grid reliability.

Gas fuel provides 43% of America’s electric power generation. Nuclear is now accepted by almost everyone. However, deploying 100 GW of new nuclear power generation by 2030 is unrealistic, given the record of permitting and construction times from recent new nuclear power plants such as Vogtle 3 and 4 which took about 10 years to build. In the U.S. nuclear power provided about 808 TWh of electricity out of about 4200 TWh total or about 19%. This is commendable, however, most of the U.S. nuclear plants were built decades ago and are an average age of about 42. 

Think about the need of 100 GW of new power generation by 2030. If the growth in supply was all nuclear, 100 GW would be equivalent to completing 45 new nuclear units the size of Vogtle units #3 & 4 in four years, if started today. 

Included in the heading “Conventional Energy” is Hydro. Why? Because it is important, it is dispatchable and it has been around for well over 100 years. Therefore, in my view, it qualifies as being conventional. When hydropower is included with thermal power, the total Primary Energy from conventional sources exceeds 90%. 

This is the primary energy that generates electricity, provides ground and air transportation, commercial & Residential heating, cooling, cooking and very importantly, industrial production. Electricity generation consumes between 33 to 40% of the world’s total primary energy. 

Electrify everything was the buzz phrase of a few years ago. Let’s look at the enormity of replacing the conventional fuels we all depend on now.

Thermal electric power generation dominates U.S. electricity generation. Gas fuel has taken the lead from coal since about 2010. The total Thermal power generation in the U.S. in 2024 was about 76% Thermal generation. 

The Enormity of BTUs Measured in Quadrillions

About 43% of America’s electricity was generated from pipeline supplied natural gas in 2025. It is hard to visualize 33 Quadrillion BTUs of methane, so I thought showing huge LNG tanker ships might be a way to describe the challenge of increasing America’s total Primary energy consumption from the current @ 100 Quads to the range of 120 Quads by 2050.

How About Coal?

In the year 2008 America consumed about 20 Quadrillion BTUs of coal generated electricity. Since then natural gas use has overtaken coal’s #1 position and coal in 2025 generated about 16% of America’s electricity and consumed about 10 Quadrillion BTUs. Coal has been demonized by many and is not perceived by the public to be the Treasure of American energy that I believe it is.  

However, from the standpoints of physics, economics, proven track record, dispatchability, energy storage and reliability….Coal is an important fuel for the next twenty or thirty years. Here are thirteen advantages of coal as a source of primary energy for electricity generation:

  • Coal Power is Proven Here and Now
  • Energy Density
  • Reliable
  • Affordable and has the best record of low cost electricity production over the long term
  • On-Site Fuel Storage for months
  • Dispatchable
  • Coal Plants are Robust and have a long life when properly maintained
  • The Manufacturing Supply-Chain is Established
  • America is the Saudi Arabia of Coal and has hundreds of year supply
  • Operations and Maintenance Training and Protocols are Established
  • Manufacturers, EPRI and Training companies all have an established library of Best O&M practices
  • Flyash/Bottom Ash Use as Concrete Additive for Strength and resistance to spalling, FGD sludge byproduct used for sheetrock and also a source of Rare Earth Minerals
  • Modern Coal Plants are clean and the emissions of major pollutants have been corrected with backend pollution control equipment. The six main pollutants have been reduced since 1970 in spite of increases in GDP, Population, auto miles driven and greater use of energy in all forms. The EPA chart below shows the progress achieved.

Conclusions

  • Wind and Solar are the Highest Cost Power and Cannot Meet Demand
  • More Dispatchable Bulk Power Plants Need to be Built
  • Coal, Gas and Nuclear Plants provide the lowest cost, most reliable Power
  • States and Countries on Path to Net-Zero Carbon are Paying a high price
  • Natural Gas Prices will likely rise in the future
  • Electricity prices will rise with fuel cost as well as from inflation of components and construction costs. 
  • Production prices of electricity will follow fuel cost
  • A Balanced Generation portfolio is Beneficial as a Hedge Against Fuel Cost Volatility
  • America should learn from the experiences of Germany, CA, Hawaii, CT, MA, ME, NH, NJ and other states with high electricity costs
  • States and countries that have shut down coal plants have experienced increased electricity production costs. This is not a forecast, this is fact
  • Building new clean coal plants are needed to continue America’s excellent record of providing reliable electricity at affordable costs.
  • Coal is the default fuel to increase America’s Primary energy supply beyond 120 Quadrillion BTUs in the next decade

Part ll will cover electric power generation in the rest of the world and some of the advances of clean coal power generation.

Thank you for reading this and very truly yours,

Dick Storm, January 28, 2025

References and Info for further reading:

  1. EIA on Coal Power Generation updated January 2026: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67084&utm_medium=email
  2. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  3. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/
  4. Reality of Building 32,000 MW of New Generation Capacity/Year. Solutions; Build New Coal Plants Now!,  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  5. EIA Most of new generation capacity in 2025 from Solar, Aug. 20, 2025: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65964&utm_medium=email
  6. WSJ on Wind and Solar subsidies, Aug. 21, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/why-solar-and-wind-power-can-thrive-without-subsidies-cee47663
  7. Why are California Electricity Prices So High?, Sub Stack: https://open.substack.com/pub/mestes/p/why-are-californias-electricity-prices?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  8. Excellent article by Tilak Doshi, Renewables are Not Cheap, Dec. 2025, WUWT, https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/12/06/time-to-stop-pretending-renewables-are-cheap/
  9. Energy Bad Boys article on Electricity, Highest Rates in Red and Blue States, Dec. 13, 2025:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/blue-states-high-rates?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web  
  10. Energy Bad Boys Great Chart of Electricity Prices by States, Dec. 27, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/visualizing-2026?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  11. Failures of the renewables transition era are insults to taxpayers.
    The worlds’ population depends on insulation, wires, computers, and fertilizers that “renewables” cannot provide.
    Published September 1, 2025, in America Out Loud NEWS
    https://www.americaoutloud.news/failures-of-the-renewables-transition-era-are-insults-to-taxpayers/
  12. Inside Climate News on Maryland Matters of Why Electric Costs are Escalating: https://marylandmatters.org/2025/09/01/why-prices-are-soaring-in-the-countrys-largest-grid-region-explained-in-5-charts/
  13. GRIDWATCH Australia
    AT 6.30 PM eastern time THE  WIND WAS CONTRIBUTING 13%  OF DEMAND IN THE EAST 
    AND  2.5% IN THE WEST OH DEAR!!  
     https://www.nem-watch.info/widgets/RenewEconomy/
  14. WHAT ABOUT TEXAS? 
    https://www.gridstatus.io/live/ercot
  15. BRITAIN
    https://grid.iamkate.com/    
  16.  PJM https://www.pjm.com
  17. MISO https://www.misoenergy.org
  18. Ed Ireland on TX wind and solar: https://substack.com/@edireland
  19. Interview with Dave Walsh on Bannon War Room, Rumble, Sept 5, 2025: https://rumble.com/v6yif84-walsh-91-of-new-capacity-power-being-built-this-year-is-solar-and-a-little-.html?e9s=src_v1_ucp_a
  20. Tom Shepstone Sub-Stack on Massachusetts high electric rates: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/political-reality-descends-upon-massachusetts?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  21. Tom Shepstone on POSIGEN Failure in PA, Sept. 8, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/posigen-provides-yet-another-example?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  22. Tom Shepstone on Wind and Solar after OBBB, Sept. 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/are-the-days-of-solar-stupidity-coming?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  23. Energy Bad Boys on Electricity Rates Rising due to Renewables, yet, Trump is blamed: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/the-number-one-reason-trumps-policies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  24. HeatMap Newsletter: https://heatmap.news/politics/electricity-price-politics#
  25. POWER, Sept. 2025 on cost of solar and wind: https://www.powermag.com/solar-and-winds-hidden-price-tag-why-cost-isnt-the-whole-story/
  26. Fraser Institute on solar and wind cost: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/commentary/solar-and-wind-power-make-electricity-more-expensive-thats-a-fact
  27. Daily Caller, Sept. 2025: https://ijr.com/frank-lasee-how-wind-and-solar-are-quietly-inflating-electricity-bills/
  28. Forbes, Yes, Wind and Solar do Increase Electricity Prices: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/04/25/yes-solar-and-wind-really-do-increase-electricity-prices-and-for-inherently-physical-reasons/
  29. America’s Coal: https://americascoal.substack.com/p/estimating-the-real-cost-of-electricity
  30. IER on cost of solar and wind: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/rising-bills-bad-blame-whats-really-driving-electricity-prices/
  31. Energy Policy Research Chart of world electricity prices 2024. Excellent: https://eprinc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/COW2024-34-USAndEuropeanHouseholdElectricityPrices.pdf
  32. EPI Charts: https://eprinc.org/chart-of-the-week/?gf_protect_submission=1
  33. Inside Climate, Great State by State chart: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/which-states-getting-hit-hardest-electricity-price-qybsc/
  34. EIA FERC Electricity and Energy Data, Sept. 2025:  https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/current_month/september2025.pdf
  35. Inside Climate News: https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/inside-clean-energy/
  36. Excellent Paper on the Cost of Wind and Solar across the World, Oct. 5, 2025:  https://www.cis.org.au/publication/the-renewable-energy-honeymoon-starting-is-easy-the-rest-is-hard/
  37. Clintel report in WUWT, Jan. 3, 2026: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/01/03/think-tank-iref-against-all-rationality-the-eu-persists-in-its-net-zero-delusion/
  38. WUWT on the UK Wind Subsidies hit record high CFd’s Jan. 20, 2026:  https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/01/20/cfd-subsidies-hit-record-high-in-2025/
  39. Australia’s Path to Net Zero :  
    https://open.substack.com/pub/chrisuhlmann/p/the-state-vs-the-people?r=1bynvt&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay
  40. Bjorn Lomberg: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_nytimes-and-many-other-suggest-that-the-more-activity-7350118091680313344-CTSF?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  41. Bjorn Lomberg on high cost of solar and wind: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_the-expensive-green-delusion-despite-green-activity-7331637580842594304-yJtG?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  42. Substack article by Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Solar with Battery Backup, July 5th, 2025:https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/the-baseload-solar-beatdown
  43. Substack by Orr and Rolling in 2024 on the Myth of Cheap Solar: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/how-to-destroy-the-myth-of-cheap  
  44. EIA List of Electricity Rates by State: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a
  45. https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/20/hawaii-a-glimpse-into-the-future-of-the-green-new-deal-aka-inflation-reduction-act-here-is-an-update/
  46. Thomas J. Shepstone on Why Do Wind and Solar Need Subsidies if they are so Cheap?: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-are-solar-and-wind-still-government?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  47. Electricity Rates of World: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/cost-of-electricity-by-country
  48. IEA Global Energy Review, Electricity 2025:  https://www.iea.org/reports/global-energy-review-2025/electricity
  49. Global Petroleum, Electricity Prices of World: https://www.globalpetrolprices.com/electricity_prices/
  50. Electricity Rates by U.S. State: https://electricityrates.com/electricity-rates-by-state/
  51. POWER article on China High Efficiency Coal Plants: https://www.powermag.com/chinas-pingshan-phase-ii-sets-new-bar-as-worlds-most-efficient-coal-power-plant/
  52. Advancements in Steam Turbine design, POWER Magazine:  https://www.powermag.com/advancements-in-steam-turbine-efficiency-for-modern-power-generation-reducing-costs-and-emissions/
  53. Area of states for reference of solar or wind land requirements: https://the50unitedstates.com/state-sizes
  54. EIA Electricity consumption in 2022 :  https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/use-of-electricity.php
  55. ICF Electricity Load Growth Forecast to 2030 and 2050: https://www.icf.com/insights/energy/electricity-demand-expected-to-grow
  56. IEEE Spectrum on the April 2025 Blackout in Spain: https://spectrum.ieee.org/spain-grid-failure
  57. EIA Gas Prices Jan. 2026:  https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=67046&utm_medium=email
  58. Here is an absolutely nutty proposal, replace a reliable 2700 MW coal plant, (the Sherco Coal Plant) with solar panels. This is Minnesota where it gets very cold and also is known for heavy snowfall in the winter…, CNN report: https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/16/climate/coal-to-solar-minnesota
  59. Energy Bad Boys on Electricity Rates Rising due to Renewables, yet, Trump is blamed: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/the-number-one-reason-trumps-policies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  60. HeatMap Newsletter: https://heatmap.news/politics/electricity-price-politics#
  61. POWER, Sept. 2025 on cost of solar and wind: https://www.powermag.com/solar-and-winds-hidden-price-tag-why-cost-isnt-the-whole-story/
  62. Fraser Institute on solar and wind cost: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/commentary/solar-and-wind-power-make-electricity-more-expensive-thats-a-fact
  63. Daily Caller, Sept. 2025: https://ijr.com/frank-lasee-how-wind-and-solar-are-quietly-inflating-electricity-bills/
  64. Forbes, Yes, Wind and Solar do Increase Electricity Prices: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/04/25/yes-solar-and-wind-really-do-increase-electricity-prices-and-for-inherently-physical-reasons/
  65. America’s Coal: https://americascoal.substack.com/p/estimating-the-real-cost-of-electricity
  66. IER on cost of solar and wind: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/rising-bills-bad-blame-whats-really-driving-electricity-prices/
  67. Energy Policy Research Chart of world electricity prices 2024. Excellent: https://eprinc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/COW2024-34-USAndEuropeanHouseholdElectricityPrices.pdf
  68. EPI Charts: https://eprinc.org/chart-of-the-week/?gf_protect_submission=1
  69. Inside Climate, Great State by State chart: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/which-states-getting-hit-hardest-electricity-price-qybsc/
  70. EIA FERC Electricity and Energy Data, Sept. 2025:  https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/current_month/september2025.pdf
  71. Inside Climate News: https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/inside-clean-energy/
  72. Excellent Paper on the Cost of Wind and Solar across the World, Oct. 5, 2025:  https://www.cis.org.au/publication/the-renewable-energy-honeymoon-starting-is-easy-the-rest-is-hard/
  73. Clintel report in WUWT, Jan. 3, 2026: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/01/03/think-tank-iref-against-all-rationality-the-eu-persists-in-its-net-zero-delusion/
  74. WUWT on the UK Wind Subsidies hit record high CFd’s Jan. 20, 2026:  https://wattsupwiththat.com/2026/01/20/cfd-subsidies-hit-record-high-in-2025/
  75. Australia’s Path to Net Zero :  https://open.substack.com/pub/chrisuhlmann/p/the-state-vs-the-people?r=1bynvt&utm_medium=ios&shareImageVariant=overlay

Reality of 32,000 MW/Year of New Generation Demand. Solution: Build New Coal Plants Now!

Bulk Power Supply & Primary Energy:

The term BULK POWER means just that, Bulk Power in hundreds and thousands of Megawatts. America needs huge Bulk Power generation additions of about 30,000 MW per year, not small scale R&D projects of variable generation or unproven new SMRs. Perhaps some time in the future renewables and new nuclear will be viable and competitive. However for now, we need 100-800 GW of new electricity generation to replace the more than 200 GW of reliable coal plants that were either shut down or planned for shut down soon. Satisfying the growing electricity demand of the future requires lots (Lots= 30,000 MW each year) of new generation capable of 24/7 generation.

When I joined CP&L in 1973 I entered a door emblazoned with a sign: Bulk Power Supply. Then I thought the name odd and frankly, I have not seen it since. However behind that door were the men and women that managed the generation assets of CP&L which at the time was only about 5,000 MW. The Bulk Power Supply came from seven fossil plants. Those plants were; Cape Fear, Weatherspooon, H.F. Lee, Sutton, Roxboro, Asheville and Robinson, including (1973) one lone nuclear (H.B. Robinson #2) and some small hydroelectric plants in the western corner of N.C. Bulk Power Supply was measured in Megawatts. Many of those coal units (CP&L has been absorbed into Duke Energy of the Carolinas) have been shut down. Most of them have been demolished as shown on the video of the Sutton plant implosion.

These coal plants should have been replaced with new coal generation plants of higher efficiency and even better flue gas cleaning. America is paying a price which will rise further, for the loss of this vital generation capacity without replacing it in kind.

The Bulk Power Supply of America needs to grow by about 800 GW by 2050. Increasing the Bulk Power Supply is a huge challenge which has been vastly underestimated. Do the math. Building new 800,000 MW of capacity in 25 years is 32,000 MW per year of new dispatchable, reliable and affordable new capacity.

Unfortunately, I think many Utilities and government officials have under-estimated the enormity of building 800 GW of new power generation. I tried to lay out my perspective in a presentation to the Coal Institute in July. 800 GW of new generation capacity is equivalent to building over 325 coal plants the size of Duke Energy’s Roxboro Coal Plant (2462 MW) or building 360 new nuclear units such as Southern Company’s Vogtle Units # 3 & 4. (2200 MW)

How About the Primary Energy to Generate 800 GW of New Electricity Generation?

As mentioned above, many experienced authors of energy and electricity generation do not dwell on the importance of primary energy, so I will. Primary energy is not magic and it is not free as the proponents for wind and solar suggest.

The results are now in for “the Global Science Project” of experimentation with wind and solar aka “The Green New Deal”. One simply has to observe the actual electricity prices in Germany, Hawaii, Spain, California, the UK and Scandinavia to know that wind and solar cost more, are not reliable and of course they are not dispatchable.

Primary Energy

Electricity is secondary energy, it must be produced from Primary energy. In the vernacular of physics one Kilowatt hour of electricity is equivalent to 3,412.6 BTUs of thermal energy. Thermal energy has proven to be the most reliable, dispatchable and affordable. The reporting of Total Energy use by countries and the world is usually done in BTUs for U.S. customary units or in Exajoules in International units. The total world, according to the IEA has used right at 600 Exajoules (rounded from 592) and is shown below in a graphic from the Visual Capitalist. The conversion of EJ to Quadrillion BTU is EJ x 0.9478=QBTU. Example 592 EJ x 0.9478= 562 Quadrillion BTU.

The U.S. uses almost one fifth of the world’s primary energy. A reminder that economic prosperity is driven by energy. America is still the world’s #1 economy and therefore it should not be a surprise that we use almost a fifth of the world’s total primary energy consumption. This is Primary energy used not only for electricity generation but also for transportation, Industrial production, heating, cooking and commercial uses. Remember the phrase “Electrify Everything?”

The First Prerequisite to a thriving economy is that there must be available, reliable and affordable Primary energy to generate that electricity.

America Uses about 100 Quadrillion BTUs Annually of Primary Energy

The LLNL Sankey Diagram shown below details the Primary Energy flows from sources to consumption. The U.S. has used right at 100 Quadrillion BTUs for the last 20 years. A little more than a third of total primary energy is used for electricity generation. (37.7%)

The chart above is from 2022. The one below from 2009. I used this chart in a presentation to the ASME in 2011 to attempt to impress the members with the importance of coal. At the time, America was using coal for about 45% of our electricity generation and the primary energy used to generate that power was about 20 Quadrillion BTUs of coal fuel. As can be seen from the two charts, natural gas increased about 10 Quads and coal decreased a similar amount. Basically, substituting natural gas for coal power production.

Self Sabotaging of the U.S. Bulk Power Supply

Since President Obama’s two term escalated war on coal over 50% of America’s reliable, affordable, Dispatchable and energy secure power generation has been shut down. I have called this self-sabotage. Mostly as a result of Federal Regulations, especially the politically inspired (not based on human health or science) EPA Endangerment Finding. But also due to NGOs and other voices working very effectively to demonize coal power. America had the most reliable, least expensive electricity supply in 2010 and the forces against coal power have steadily weakened our energy security, reliability and affordability. Electricity prices are climbing and will continue to do so as more unreliable, variable generation is forced onto the Grid, and backed up by natural gas fuel. Low prices of natural gas are not guaranteed into the future and fuel is the major cost component for thermal power generation. If the fuel cost doubles, so does the production cost of electricity.

The chart below from the IEEFA shows the path of coal free power generation. Some states and countries are ahead of my state of S.C. and the electricity costs in those states that have shut down their coal plants has escalated sharply. Germany has suffered from significant De-Industrialization as a result of forcing wind and solar on the nation. If America continues the path set by Net-Zero Carbon advocates, we all will join Hawaii, California, Spain, Germany, the UK, Massachusetts and Connecticut with higher cost power and possible de-industrialization.

Thanks to President Trump and Chris Wright, America’s energy regulatory policy is somewhat corrected. However, some states, even S.C. still have laws on the books to exit coal. I feel this is energy suicide. Coal is a national treasure that should be utilized. In fact, in my opinion, it is the best and only viable choice of primary energy to provide the needed electricity generation between now and 2050. A coal plant should be able to be built in four years. We have done it before and can do it again!

The Future 2025-2050

Electricity generation capacity will need to increase dramatically over the next 25 years. The projected growth has been well documented by many others including Stephen Heins, Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr., the ICF, NEMA and others. What is needed is an enormous amount of new, Dispatchable, reliable and affordable Bulk Power. About 800,000 MW of new Bulk Power. he workforce challenge is a topic to cover on another day.In my analysis, nuclear will play an important part. So will natural gas. However, there are three limits to just how much nuclear and natural gas can supply. These three constraints are Supply-Chain, pipelines and achieving a Balanced generation portfolio. The nuclear supply chain limits have been discussed before and although proven and an excellent clean choice, nuclear seems decades away before the needed capacity can be built. For example, it took America over 30 years (1957-1987) to design and build the existing nuclear fleet of about 97,000 MW of capacity. We now need eight times the nuclear fleet that was built over 30 years. Keep in mind, the legacy nuclear units built 1957-1987 were constructed when the Supply-Chain was well established, there were thousands of trained and experienced engineers at B&W, Combustion-Engineering and Westinghouse and craftsmen were much more abundant in the workforce. Many experienced engineers and craftsmen are now retired. Rebuilding the workforce is a topic for another day.

“Just in Time” Primary Energy

Today about 45% of the U.S. electricity generation at peak times is provided by natural gas through “just in time” pipelines. Not only is the Supply-Chain of new gas turbine plants limited but so are the pipelines and fuel supply. In my analysis, we already have too much dependence on pipeline provided natural gas. Remember the Colonial Pipeline Hack of 2021? Coal plants have the inherent advantage of being capable of storing several months of fuel on site.

The best choice for a Balanced Portfolio then, in my analysis is to build new coal plants. In Dick Storm’s Perfect World of Power Generation, I would like to see a Balanced generation portfolio of 30% coal, nuclear, gas, with 10% renewables. Illustration from the Coal Institute presentation.

Conclusion

The policy planners and utilities have gravely underestimated the growth of electricity Demand and now are catching up by using the “Easy Button” of purchasing gas turbines for backup power for wind and solar. Most of the capital being invested in new generation in this calendar year is for solar, wind and BESS (Battery Electricity Storage). This is a mistake that will cost Americans dearly.

President Trump, Chris Wright and Lee Zeldin have done the best they can to correct decades of poor flawed planning by the EPA and Congress with the Inflation Recovery Act version of the New Green Deal. However, many states and large Utilities still remain on a foolish path toward Net-Zero Carbon. For example, Here are five articles on U.S. and South Carolina Energy Policies:

  1. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/
  2. Swamp Opposition to President Trump’s America First Agenda, Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  3. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  4. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  5. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/

America needs to begin building new Dispatchable, affordable and proven reliable Bulk Power Generation as soon as possible. As I see it, the best source of the needed primary energy to satisfy the demand is America’s own treasure of coal reserves. Think about the needed capacity in terms of 32,000 MW per year for 25 years. That my friends is a heavy lift. As a country we must unite behind President Trump to get this done…Wake up Americans!

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, October 22, 2025

References and Further Reading:

  1. The Coal Institute Presentation by Dick Storm, July 2025: http://thecoalinstitute.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Dick%20Storm%20Presentation%20July%202025.pdf
  2. Institute for Energy, Economic and Financial Analysis. on Coal Plant retirements since 2011: https://ieefa.org/resources/us-track-close-half-coal-capacity-2026
  3. Duke Energy Carolinas, Demolition video of Sutton Unit #3, Nov. 2016: https://youtu.be/miSapiaJTpM
  4. The Coal Institute, Dick Storm presentation, July 2025: http://www.thecoalinstitute.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Dick%20Storm%20Presentation%20July%202025.pdf
  5. Dr. John Constable on the Importance of Energy, You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scYlWiunJo4
  6. The Ancestry of Energy by Pandreco: https://open.substack.com/pub/pandreco/p/the-ancestry-of-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false  
  7. WSJ-Rahm Emanuel Opinion, Sept 17, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/rising-electricity-price-thank-trump-2270cf1f?mod=Searchresults&pos=1&page=1
  8. WSJ counter point to Rahm Emanuel OpEd, Sept. 21, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/big-electric-bill-thank-the-energy-subsidies-emanuel-trump-50d1dcd8?mod=opinion_more_article_pos32
  9. Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on wind, solar and gas cause electricity prices to rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/rising-natural-gas-costs-make-wind?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  10. Devil’s Algorithm and Climate Matrix: https://open.substack.com/pub/tilakdoshi/p/the-devils-algorithm-unplugging-from?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  11. Energy Charts on Germany: https://www.energy-charts.info/charts/energy_pie/chart.htm?l=en&c=DE
  12. Ember Charts and Energy Info on worldwide energy use: https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/?data=generation https://ember-energy.org/data/electricity-data-explorer/?data=generation&entity=United+States
  13. Tom Shepstone Sub-Stack on Massachusetts high electric rates: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/political-reality-descends-upon-massachusetts?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  14. Tom Shepstone on POSIGEN Failure in PA, Sept. 8, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/posigen-provides-yet-another-example?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  15. Tom Shepstone on Wind and Solar after OBBB, Sept. 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/are-the-days-of-solar-stupidity-coming?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  16. Energy Bad Boys on Electricity Rates Rising due to Renewables, yet, Trump is blamed: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/the-number-one-reason-trumps-policies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  17. HeatMap Newsletter: https://heatmap.news/politics/electricity-price-politics#
  18. POWER, Sept. 2025 on cost of solar and wind: https://www.powermag.com/solar-and-winds-hidden-price-tag-why-cost-isnt-the-whole-story/
  19. Fraser Institute on solar and wind cost: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/commentary/solar-and-wind-power-make-electricity-more-expensive-thats-a-fact
  20. Daily Caller, Sept. 2025: https://ijr.com/frank-lasee-how-wind-and-solar-are-quietly-inflating-electricity-bills/
  21. Forbes, Yes, Wind and Solar do Increase Electricity Prices: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/04/25/yes-solar-and-wind-really-do-increase-electricity-prices-and-for-inherently-physical-reasons/
  22. America’s Coal: https://americascoal.substack.com/p/estimating-the-real-cost-of-electricity
  23. IER on cost of solar and wind: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/rising-bills-bad-blame-whats-really-driving-electricity-prices/
  24. Energy Policy Research Chart of world electricity prices 2024. Excellent: https://eprinc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/COW2024-34-USAndEuropeanHouseholdElectricityPrices.pdf
  25. EPI Charts: https://eprinc.org/chart-of-the-week/?gf_protect_submission=1
  26. Inside Climate, Great State by State chart: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/which-states-getting-hit-hardest-electricity-price-qybsc/
  27. EIA FERC Electricity and Energy Data, Sept. 2025:  https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/current_month/september2025.pdf
  28. Inside Climate News: https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/inside-clean-energy/
  29. Excellent Paper on the Cost of Wind and Solar across the World, Oct. 5, 2025:  https://www.cis.org.au/publication/the-renewable-energy-honeymoon-starting-is-easy-the-rest-is-hard/
  30. Threats to the Electric Grid, Update, May 25, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/15/threats-to-the-grid-electricity-reliability/
  31. Colonial Pipeline Hack, 2021: https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/news/attack-colonial-pipeline-what-weve-learned-what-weve-done-over-past-two-years
  32. Mitch Rolling on Wind and Solar, Oct. 18, 2025: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/more-is-less-with-wind-and-solar
  33. Watts Up With That, Oct 2$, 2025, What Green Transition? Coal Use Continues to Rise: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/10/24/green-transition-coal-use-hits-record-high/
  34. American Public Power on Electricity Growth to 2050: https://www.publicpower.org/periodical/article/study-sees-dramatic-rise-us-power-demand-2050

Ten Hard Truths of S.C. Electricity-The Lifeblood of the Economy

There are a number of states that are on a path to higher electricity bills and less reliability, including S.C. Why? Because the S.C. Governor and the Legislature are still stuck on Net Zero Carbon. I thought it might be informative to list 10 unpopular truths:

Hard Truths that Apply to S.C. as Well as All Other U.S. States

  •  New nuclear plants will take decades to be built to replace existing coal and gas units
  • Electricity generation for Dispatchable Electricity Generation capacity takes years to build
  • Most of our electricity today comes from power plants that are more than 30 years old. S.C. examples: The Wateree coal plant began operation in 1970, Duke Energy’s Oconee nuclear plant, the largest in South Carolina, first unit started up in 1973, and the first Santee-Cooper Cross Unit began operation in 1984 and Winyah 1975.
  • The major production cost component of electricity generation for Thermal Power Plants is fuel
  • The proven lowest production cost of electricity is from coal, nuclear and gas
  • Coal prices have remained stable for decades
  • Gas prices are volatile and can fluctuate with market changes. Low gas prices into the future are not guaranteed
  • Wind, Solar, and Battery storage are higher-cost producers of Bulk Power. Forget the “Free Fuel Myth of Wind and Solar”. All states and countries that have taken the S.C. Net-Zero Carbon path now have high-cost electricity
  • South Carolina is on a similar primary energy path as Germany was fifteen years ago
  • It takes decades for the impact of energy policies to be felt by consumers and industry

Here is a presentation to the Beaufort Federation of Republican Men, which summarizes the S.C. path to higher cost electricity.

Bulk Power Supply and Demand Projections to 2052

The Supply/Demand Chart of Santee-Cooper is shown below. Note the plan to reduce coal power generation and replace it with gas, purchased power and variable renewables.

A Better Path: Build New Coal Plants

The low country of South Carolina has been well served by Santee-Cooper since 1934. Also known as South Carolina Public Service Authority. SCPSA is state owned and controlled.

Like TVA, Santee-Cooper began with hydroelectric generation and as with TVA, the electricity demand rapidly increased to loads far in excess of the available hydroelectric capacity. Thus coal plants were built and for most of the last 80 years most of the electricity generation has been from coal fuel. This continues to be the case. The screenshot below is the electricity generation the week of December 2, 2024. The primary energy provided for the power production was 77% coal fuel at this time and it will be needed again this coming winter.

To this day most of the Santee-Cooper installed power generation capacity is coal power plants. Here is a list of their generating assets. Over 60% are dispatchable and proven to be affordable coal power. Electricity costs in our region has been amongst the lowest in the U.S. for decades. Thanks to coal fuel. As the transition to more renewables and more backup natural gas is made, the cost of Bulk Power generation will increase as it has in Germany, the UK, Hawaii, CT, MA, NJ and other states that are ahead of S.C. in transitioning from coal to more renewable energy. The so called “Energy Transition” is the root cause of increasing electric rates. Hawaii as a poster child example of a transition to expensive “Green New Deal” renewables.

What About Industry?

About a third of S.C. electricity is used by industry. This is important for U.S. security, competitiveness and for the jobs industry provides. For the low country of S.C. there are at least two very energy intensive industries; Century Aluminum and Nucor Steel. Both of these industries use hundreds of Megawatts for steel and aluminum production. The main reason the plants were built in S.C. was because of reasonable cost electricity provided by Santee-Cooper. The Century Aluminum plant at full capacity will use over 400 MW and each Nucor plant about 175 MW. These two companies alone represent 24/7 Demand that is about a quarter of the huge Cross Generating Station’s capacity.

Can We Learn From the Experiences of Germany, the UK, California, Hawaii, Connecticut and New Jersey?

Each of these states & countries have been working toward a transition away from coal and toward renewables. In each case the electric rates have escalated to the point that they have caused industries to shut down and harmed the industrial capacity of the countries or states. Electricity is the LifeBlood of an economy. Ask a knowledgeable German citizen about the results of their energy transition.

The high German electricity rates have caused many very well run and established companies to shut down and/or relocate manufacturing into other countries. Three examples are BASF, Krupp Steel and VW

The Optimum Future Electricity Generation Capacity

A Balanced generation portfolio is optimum as a hedge against fuel cost escalation, security of generation and reliability of generation. In my experience and based on the well documented experiences of other states and countries, a balanced generation portfolio of no more than 20% renewables with the balance of generation from dispatchable sources such as nuclear, gas and coal, is best. Plenty of references are listed below (also the chart above) which show the results of over-reliance on windmills solar and battery backup or BESS (Battery Electricity Storage and Supply).

Conclusions

The main point I wish to make here is that Bulk Power, that is huge amounts of electricity generation from large power plants take years, even decades to replace or to use the word more common today, Transition. Most of the vital 24/7 electricity supply to S.C. is provided by aging power plants. Examples, Oconee about 53 years, Wateree about 55, Winyah 50 and Cross about 40 years old.

As reliable, affordable and dispatchable coal plants are shut down the electric production cost will increase and along with the rising production cost, eventually increased rates.

Building new coal plants as once was planned at the Pee Dee plant site, was and still is a good idea. So is building more nuclear plants but that takes time.

My suggestion for the S.C. Legislature is to remove the Net-Zero Carbon laws that are on the books and to provide ample funds for maintenance of the existing coal plants serving S.C. so well.

Respectfully yours,

Dick Storm, October 8, 2025

References and info for further Research

  1. Santee-Cooper Celebrates 90 Years: https://www.postandcourier.com/kingstree/business/santee-cooper-celebrates-90-years/article_07d4c756-f1e2-11ee-a2fd-5b7595de1823.html
  2. Palmetto Promise, 2019 article on Century Aluminum and Electricity Provided by Santee-Cooper: https://palmettopromise.org/tale-of-the-century/
  3. Century Aluminum to Return to 100% Capacity with new PPA, Oct. 7, 2025: https://www.alcircle.com/news/century-aluminums-mt-holly-smelter-set-to-return-to-full-capacity-by-2026-115747
  4. Dick Storm presentation, October 2025 to Beaufort Federation of Republican Men: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7379119520445071360?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  5. America uses about 100 Quadrillion BTUs annually: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/16/back-to-basics-the-u-s-needs-100-quadrillion-btus-year-of-primary-energy/  
  6. Each citizen uses approx., 300 million BTUs annually https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/04/american-dream-100-quadrillion-btus/
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/08/22/energy-life-that-is-life-as-we-enjoy-it/
  7. EIA https://www.eia.gov/state/print.php?sid=SC
  8. Electric generation capacity of Dominion and Santee-Cooper about 12,000 MW of Bulk Power Capacity: https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/hjyEG/5/  Duke Energy about 6600MW
  9. Over 50% of S.C. total electricity generation is by nuclear power. 6 of the 7 nuclear units in S.C. are owned by Duke Energy
    Beaufort and Jasper counties are served by Palmetto Electric for transmission and Distribution of electricity https://www.palmetto.coop/sites/default/files/documents/Integrated-Resource-Plan.pdf
  10. Santee-Cooper 2025 updated IRP (Integrated Resource Plan that outlines Bulk Power sources for the future): https://www.santeecooper.com/About/Integrated-Resource-Plan/presentations/Santee-Cooper-2025-IRP-Update.pdf
  11. Dominion South Carolina updated 2025 IRP: https://www.dominionenergy.com/-/media/content/about/our-company/irp/pdfs/desc-integrated-resource-plan-2025.pdf
    https://south-carolina-energy-office-1-1-scors-eo.hub.arcgis.com/pages/electricity-data
  12. The S.C. Legislature has laws on the books to exit coal power and depend on gas, nuclear, solar, wind and Battery backup systems (BESS). All of which are higher cost generation than coal. https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/bills/3309.htm
  13. The decision to cancel the Pee Dee Coal Plant in 2009  and the failure of SCE&G to complete Units 2 & 3 at the Summer Nuclear Plant will result in increased electricity costs for all of Palmetto Electric customers: https://www.powermag.com/south-carolinas-santee-cooper-shelves-2-billion-coal-plant-project/
  14. Wind, solar and BESS systems need to be backed up by Dispatchable generation. Usually that backup (and planned for S.C) is natural gas fueled generating plants. Therefore, one reason electricity costs are higher with solar and wind is because two to four times the generation capacity is needed over a coal or nuclear plant. Solar and wind are intermittent generators dependent on nature. Solar averages about 6 hours per day of generation.
  15. How Can a 6,000 MW Utility that will be a 9,000MW Utility in 2050, become Net-Zero Carbon? April 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/04/27/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon/
  16. Providing a Sustainable Million BTUs per Day/Person, May 17,  2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/05/17/providing-a-sustainable-million-btus-per-day-per-person-by-fuel-source/
  17. Duke Energy to keep coal units running, by Stephen Heins, Sept. 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/stephenheins/p/headline-duke-energy-hoping-to-keep?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  18. Reuters on Duke Energy announcing the consideration of new nuclear and extending life of coal plants, Sept. 2025: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/duke-energy-considers-nuclear-reactors-coal-extensions-carolinas-energy-plan-2025-10-01/
  19. A Short History of Power Generation, Part 1, 1850-1955, January 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/01/14/a-short-history-of-energy-electricity-and-how-our-high-quality-of-living-came-to-be-high-human-development-index-part-1-1850-1955/
  20. A Short History of Power Generation, Part 2:  https://wp.me/p5DzAo-k6
  21. A Short History of Power Generation, Part 3: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-ll
  22. A Short History of Power Generation, Part 4: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-n4
  23. “The War on Carbon, How it Came to Be”, Oct. 16, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/16/the-war-on-carbon-how-it-came-to-be/
  24. Energy and Economic Prosperity, Jan. 11, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/01/03/energy-and-economic-prosperity/
  25. Energy and World Peace, April, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/04/05/energy-world-peace/
  26. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  27. Energy and Economic Prosperity Nov.  2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/11/18/energy-and-economic-prosperity-2/
  28. Without New Thinking on Nuclear Power, Anti-Carbon Policy Can’t Succeed, Nov. 11, 2021 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/11/13/without-new-thinking-on-nuclear-power-anti-carbon-climate-policy-cant-succeed/
  29. The Rise and Fall and Rise Again  of Nations and the  Realities of Energy: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/08/15/the-rise-fall-and-rise-again-of-nations-and-the-realities-of-energy/
  30. Pillars of Modern Civilization, Ammonia, Food, Steel, Concrete, Plastics, Aluminum, July 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/25/pillars-of-modern-civilization-all-dependent-on-energy/
  31. Dick Storm Blog post, “Wake Up Americans!” Sept. 21, 2023:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/09/20/please-wake-up-america-your-energy-and-electricity-generation-reliability-are-at-risk/
  32. THE ERA OF RELIABLE, AFFORDABLE, ENERGY AND ELECTRICITY GENERATION: PART 1
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/10/04/the-era-of-reliable-affordable-energy-and-electricity-generation-part-1/
  33. The Green Energy Crisis is Here, Part 1, Sept. 17, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/29/the-green-energy-crisis-is-here-part-1/
  34. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 2, “Meet Some of the People that Caused it”,  June 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/14/green-energy-crisis-part-2-meet-the-policy-makers-that-caused-it/
  35. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  36. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 3, June 26, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/26/green-energy-crisis-part-3-public-energy-education-is-needed-each-person-in-the-u-s-uses-about-315-million-btus-of-primary-energy-year-this-is-not-practical-or-even-possible-to-replace-with-win/
  37. German Household electricity prices 2009-2024: https://countryeconomy.com/energy-and-environment/electricity-price-household/germany
  38. DW News, Germany YouTube on Germany’s dependence on Russian Gas and Oil: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/p4?projector=1
  39. Another YouTube video of German dependence on Russian Gas: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/p4?projector=1
  40. WSJ Jan. 2024 on relationship of Security of EU Economy, Russian gas and China: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/welcome-warily-the-eu-getting-serious-on-china-economic-security-net-zero-deindustrialization-de292bf1?st=JjwzXh&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalinkc
  41. “Update on Hawaii’s Glimpse of the Future of the Green New Deal” March 20, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/20/hawaii-a-glimpse-into-the-future-of-the-green-new-deal-aka-inflation-reduction-act-here-is-an-update/
  42. The Reality of Electrifying Everything,  April 9, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/04/09/the-reality-of-electrifying-everything-and-the-primary-energy-required-to-generate-the-electricity/
  43. Am I Missing Something? Here is an Update on Hyundai’s Commitment to its EV Meta Plant in Georgia:   https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/04/14/am-i-missing-something-on-evs-here-is-an-update-on-hyundais-meta-plant-commitment-to-evs-and-hydrogen-vehicles/
  44. Tom Shepstone’s post on Substack of Dick Storm’s letter to Senator Tom Davis: https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/a-balanced-energy-portfolio-is-critical/comments
  45. Dick Storm LI Post on SC Energy policies and failed coal and nuclear plant plans: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7184184178920312833?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  46. DW YouTube on Russian oil and gas and Germany: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/p4?projector=1
  47. De-Industrialization of Germany article: 
    https://ceinterim.com/deindustrialization-in-germany/
  48. Rust Belt on the Rhine, De-Industrialization of Germany: 
    https://www.politico.eu/article/rust-belt-on-the-rhine-the-deindustrialization-of-germany/
  49. International Banker: Jan. 2025 https://internationalbanker.com/finance/germany-has-an-escalating-deindustrialisation-problem/
  50. Gatestone Institute Dec. 2024 on German Energy Policy and De-Industrialization: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/21244/europe-germany-renewable-energy
  51. From WSJ, Jan. 2024. Net-Zero and German DeIndustrialization: https://www.wsj.com/opinion/welcome-warily-the-eu-getting-serious-on-china-economic-security-net-zero-deindustrialization-de292bf1?st=JjwzXh&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink
  52. Devil’s Algorithm & Climate Matrix: https://open.substack.com/pub/tilakdoshi/p/the-devils-algorithm-unplugging-from?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  53. The EPA “Endangerment Finding” and why it Needs to Go, Feb. 2, 2025: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-1ZW
  54. The SWAMP MONSTER vs. 300 Million Americans, Feb. 21, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/21/the-swamp-monster-vs-the-best-interests-of-the-united-states-of-america/
  55. Thomas J. Shepstone Substack on Dick Storm’s “Primer on How to Ensure Electricity Security (and How to Destroy It)”:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/a-primer-on-how-to-ensure-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  56. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  57. Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  58. David Siegel videos on Climate Change: https://www.cuttingthroughthenoise.net/climate-curious 
  59. The EPA Endangerment Finding Needs to Go! Thomas Shepstone publishing of Dick Storm article, March 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-epa-endangerment-finding-needs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  60. The U.S. Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis was Created by GONGO the SWAMP Monster, March 19, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/19/the-u-s-self-inflicted-electricity-generation-crisis-was-created-by-gongo-the-swamp-monster-here-is-how-to-end-it/
  61. Coal Power, It is the End Result that Matters!:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/28/coal-power-it-is-the-end-result-that-counts/
  62. My Letter to Senator Davis on Coal Power in S.C. April 1, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/03/response-to-palmetto-electric-request-to-contact-our-s-c-senators/
  63. The Solution to America’s Electricity Generation Crisis: Build New Coal Plants Now! https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/18/the-solution-to-the-nations-coming-electricity-reliability-crisis-build-new-coal-plants/
  64. Clean Energy Crisis, May 2, 2025     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/02/clean-energy-crisis-2/
  65. Thomas J. Shepstone, edited version of Clean Energy Crisis on Substack, May 3, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-clean-energy-crisis-and-why-it?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  66. Jason Hayes republishing of Why Electric rates in SC will Rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonhayes/p/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  67. Reality of Building 125 GW of New Coal Power Generation Capacity, Then and Now: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/07/the-reality-of-building-125-gw-of-new-coal-plant-generation-capacity-then-and-now/
  68. Repeal the IRA, Protect America’s Life-Blood of Energy and Electricity”:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/15/repeal-the-ira-protect-americas-lifeblood-of-energy-and-electricity-supply/
  69. Ron Stein and Dick Storm co authored article in America Out Loud, May 19, 2025: https://www.americaoutloud.news/intermittent-electricity-from-renewables-cannot-support-ai-and-data-centers/
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/27/internal-and-external-threats-to-the-u-s-electric-grid/
  70. The Reality of Returning Major Power Generation Equipment Manufacturing to the U.S. 
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/01/the-reality-of-returning-major-power-generation-equipment-manufacturing-to-the-u-s/
  71. Present DangerChina.org  Threats to the Electric Grid, Frank Gaffney, Grant Newsom, Sam Faddis, Dave Walsh and Dick Storm: https://presentdangerchina.org/webinar-inside-our-wires-the-ccp-has-penetrated-our-electric-grid-will-xi-destroy-it/
  72. Conventional Energy Including Coal is the Life-Blood of America:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/18/conventional-energy-including-coal-is-the-life-blood-of-america/
  73. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm blog post on the “Madness of the Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis” https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-madness-of-the-us-self-inflicted?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  74. Energy is the Economy and Electricity is the Life-Blood of western civilization Coal Can Make America’s Electricity Supply Great Again  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/07/30/energy-is-the-economy-electricity-is-the-life-blood-of-western-civilization-coal-can-make-americas-electricity-supply-great-again/
  75. Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/electricity-is-the-life-blood-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  76. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/
  77. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  78. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  79. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  80. Forbes, Yes, Wind and Solar do Increase Electricity Prices: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelshellenberger/2018/04/25/yes-solar-and-wind-really-do-increase-electricity-prices-and-for-inherently-physical-reasons/
  81. America’s Coal: https://americascoal.substack.com/p/estimating-the-real-cost-of-electricity
  82. IER on cost of solar and wind: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/rising-bills-bad-blame-whats-really-driving-electricity-prices/
  83. Energy Policy Research Chart of world electricity prices 2024. Excellent: https://eprinc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/COW2024-34-USAndEuropeanHouseholdElectricityPrices.pdf
  84. EPI Charts: https://eprinc.org/chart-of-the-week/?gf_protect_submission=1
  85. Inside Climate, Great State by State chart: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/which-states-getting-hit-hardest-electricity-price-qybsc/
  86. EIA FERC Electricity and Energy Data, Sept. 2025:  https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/current_month/september2025.pdf
  87. Inside Climate News: https://insideclimatenews.org/tags/inside-clean-energy/
  88. Excellent Paper on the Cost of Wind and Solar across the World, Oct. 5, 2025:  https://www.cis.org.au/publication/the-renewable-energy-honeymoon-starting-is-easy-the-rest-is-hard/

Five Reasons to Build New Coal Plants NOW! Coal Should Be Included as A Critical Fuel to Power America’s Future

We can call it a “Bridge Fuel” or just face the reality that it now takes over 100 Quadrillion BTUs of Primary Energy to Power America each year and that Primary Energy Demand will increase in the future. America is the Saudi Arabia of coal and we have the richest and highest quality coal on the planet. Also, an infrastructure to mine it and to transport it. This treasure should be utilized for the benefit of America and all of Humankind.

There are many reasons that new Base Load coal power plants should be under construction right now. In fact, they should have been under construction ten years ago!

Dick Storm’s Top Five Reasons to Build New coal Plants Now:

  • Electric Power Demand is Soaring and Coal has proven to be reliable and affordable
  • Coal power plants of sufficient Base Load Generation capacity could be built within ten years or less
  • Coal fuel cost is stable with less volatility than gas
  • America has more than sufficient coal reserves within our borders to fuel new coal power plants at a stable price
  • America’s Primary Energy Demand is likely to exceed 120 Quadrillion BTUs per year in the next decade. Coal will provide the additional productive capacity and it has been proven to do so by existing infrastructure

Choices of Primary Energy to Fuel the World

Global energy demand hit a record 592 exajoules (EJ) in 2024 — up 2%.



So, where did it come from?
 • Oil: 199 EJ (33.6%) – still the #1 source
 • Coal: 27.9% 
 • Gas: 25.2% 

Fossil Fuels are Still Important!
Together, oil, coal, and gas supplied 86.7% of global energy. Despite the MSM reports, these three fuels still provide the primary energy we need and depend on.

🔥 Keeping the lights on
🥘 Cooking our food
🚗 Driving us to work
❄️ Powering our fridges and hospitals
🏠 Keeping us warm

Powers the manufacturing that in-turn, powers the Economy
👨‍🌾 Keeping us alive 

Vaclav Smil shows that at least half of humanity is fed by nitrogen based fertilizers — made using natural gas via the Haber-Bosch process. That’s ~4 billion people who simply couldn’t survive without hydrocarbons. Add to that the energy needed for water, hospitals, heating, and transport, and the death toll from eliminating oil, coal, and gas overnight would not be in the millions — but in the billions.

Our much maligned Hydrocarbons don’t boast about this. They just work quietly to keep us alive. Each American uses right at 300 million BTUs each year. This is an average of just under 1 million BTU/day/person.

President Trump stated it correctly at the U.N. yesterday, “Climate Policies are a big Con Job” The only thing that the transition to solar and wind has done is to drive our electric bills through the roof and causing hardship and suffering amongst our most vulnerable. 

🔌 Let’s not forget the reality of the sources of PRIMARY Energy that powers the world

Electricity Generation

About a third of the primary energy is used to generate electricity and the other 2/3’s for Transportation, Industrial, Commercial and Residential use.

America uses and has used right at 100 Quadrillion BTUs of Primary Energy annually. The total of 100 Quads is bound to grow in the future owing to natural electricity demand growth of a growing population, electricfication of some transportation, through reshoring of U.S. manufacturing and AI Data Center new electricity Demand. Note from the chart below the relatively constant total Primary Energy use. It is within 5% of a constant 100 Quadrillion BTUs per year ever since about the year 2000. In my opinion, it is reasonable to expect the total primary energy demand to increase by at least 20% over the next 20 years.

Visual Capitalist has another excellent illustration of projected U.S. Electricity growth to 2050. Please keep in mind, electricity uses between 33 and 40% of available primary energy. Therefore, considering all factors, including energy security, volatility of natural gas prices, exported LNG and other facts, coal provides the readily available primary energy to generate electricity in the needed Bulk Power quantities.

Electricity is important and so is transportation, residential heating, cooking and Industrial production from viable manufacturing plants.

Conclusion

The best solution to the self inflicted electricity generation crisis is to immediately begin building new coal plants. Over 150 new coal plants were planned in 2007, then President Obama launched his all out “War on Coal” and he was successful in stopping most of them from being constructed and even worse, created policies that resulted in the shutting down and demolishing over half of the existing coal power generation capacity.

The Life-Blood of America is electricity. I presented my thoughts on this in July at the Coal Institute summer meeting. I stand behind those comments and recommendations.

Thankfully we now have President Trump and he understands the relationship of reliable, affordable electricity generation. His speech to the U.N. yesterday was spot on. May God Bless and protect President Trump and his outstanding Cabinet.

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, September 23, 2025

References and for further research of the facts:

  1. EIA sources of Primary Energy 1950-2024: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65524
  2. Visual Capitalist on Primary Energy used in the World: https://www.voronoiapp.com/energy/What-Powered-the-World-in-2024–6217
  3. EIA U.S. Primary Energy use 1950-2024: https://www.eia.gov/totalenergy/data/browser/index.php?tbl=T01.01#/?f=A&start=1949&end=2024&charted=4-6-7-14
  4. POWER Magazine June 2006 Cover Story, Coal Fired Plant Capacity Continues to Increase : https://www.powermag.com/cover-story-coal-fired-electric-power-capacity-continues-to-increase/
  5. Global Energy Monitor Proposed Coal Plants Planned in 2007: https://www.gem.wiki/Proposed_coal_plants_in_the_United_States
  6. Global Energy Monitor  https://www.gem.wiki/Category:Proposed_coal_plants_in_the_United_States
  7. GEMS, “What Happened to the 151 Coal Plants” updated by GEMS 2017: https://www.gem.wiki/What_happened_to_the_151_proposed_coal_plants%3F
  8. NETL Report on Status of New Coal Plants 2010: https://www.netl.doe.gov/projects/files/TrackingNewCoalFiredPowerPlants_010810.pdf
  9. Dick Storm presentation to the Coal Institute, July 2025: http://www.thecoalinstitute.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/Dick%20Storm%20Presentation%20July%202025.pdf
  10. Thomas Shepstone on President Trump’s speech to the U.N: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/trump-says-it-out-loud-climate-alarmism?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  11. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  12. Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  13. The U.S. Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis was Created by GONGO the SWAMP Monster, March 19, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/19/the-u-s-self-inflicted-electricity-generation-crisis-was-created-by-gongo-the-swamp-monster-here-is-how-to-end-it/
  14. Coal Power, It is the End Result that Matters!:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/28/coal-power-it-is-the-end-result-that-counts/
  15. My Letter to Senator Davis on Coal Power in S.C. April 1, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/03/response-to-palmetto-electric-request-to-contact-our-s-c-senators/
  16. The Solution to America’s Electricity Generation Crisis: Build New Coal Plants Now! https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/18/the-solution-to-the-nations-coming-electricity-reliability-crisis-build-new-coal-plants/
  17. Clean Energy Crisis, May 2, 2025     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/02/clean-energy-crisis-2/
  18. Thomas J. Shepstone, edited version of Clean Energy Crisis on Substack, May 3, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-clean-energy-crisis-and-why-it?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  19. Jason Hayes republishing of Why Electric rates in SC will Rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonhayes/p/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  20. Reality of Building 125 GW of New Coal Power Generation Capacity, Then and Now: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/07/the-reality-of-building-125-gw-of-new-coal-plant-generation-capacity-then-and-now/
  21. Repeal the IRA, Protect America’s Life-Blood of Energy and Electricity”:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/15/repeal-the-ira-protect-americas-lifeblood-of-energy-and-electricity-supply/
  22. Ron Stein and Dick Storm co authored article in America Out Loud, May 19, 2025: https://www.americaoutloud.news/intermittent-electricity-from-renewables-cannot-support-ai-and-data-centers/
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/27/internal-and-external-threats-to-the-u-s-electric-grid/
  23. The Reality of Returning Major Power Generation Equipment Manufacturing to the U.S. 
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/01/the-reality-of-returning-major-power-generation-equipment-manufacturing-to-the-u-s/
  24. Present DangerChina.org  Threats to the Electric Grid, Frank Gaffney, Grant Newsom, Sam Faddis, Dave Walsh and Dick Storm: https://presentdangerchina.org/webinar-inside-our-wires-the-ccp-has-penetrated-our-electric-grid-will-xi-destroy-it/
  25. Conventional Energy Including Coal is the Life-Blood of America:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/18/conventional-energy-including-coal-is-the-life-blood-of-america/
  26. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm blog post on the “Madness of the Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis” https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-madness-of-the-us-self-inflicted?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  27. Energy is the Economy and Electricity is the Life-Blood of western civilization Coal Can Make America’s Electricity Supply Great Again  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/07/30/energy-is-the-economy-electricity-is-the-life-blood-of-western-civilization-coal-can-make-americas-electricity-supply-great-again/
  28. Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/electricity-is-the-life-blood-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  29. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/
  30. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  31. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  32. Energy and Economic Prosperity, Jan. 11, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/01/03/energy-and-economic-prosperity/
  33. Energy and World Peace, April, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/04/05/energy-world-peace/
  34. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  35. Energy and Economic Prosperity Nov.  2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/11/18/energy-and-economic-prosperity-2/
  36. Without New Thinking on Nuclear Power, Anti-Carbon Policy Can’t Succeed, Nov. 11, 2021 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/11/13/without-new-thinking-on-nuclear-power-anti-carbon-climate-policy-cant-succeed/
  37. The Rise and Fall and Rise Again  of Nations and the  Realities of Energy: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/08/15/the-rise-fall-and-rise-again-of-nations-and-the-realities-of-energy/
  38. America Needs 100 Quadrillion BTUs of Primary Energy Each Year, May 16, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/16/back-to-basics-the-u-s-needs-100-quadrillion-btus-year-of-primary-energy/  
  39. Pillars of Modern Civilization, Ammonia, Food, Steel, Concrete, Plastics, Aluminum, July 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/25/pillars-of-modern-civilization-all-dependent-on-energy/
  40. How Can a 6,000 MW Utility that will be a 9,000MW Utility in 2050, become Net-Zero Carbon? April 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/04/27/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon/
  41. Energy=Life as We Enjoy it, Aug. 22, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/08/22/energy-life-that-is-life-as-we-enjoy-it/
  42. “The War on Carbon, How it Came to Be”, Oct. 16, 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/16/the-war-on-carbon-how-it-came-to-be/
  43. 830,000 BTUs per Day/Person, Sept. 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/09/16/830000-btus-per-day-person/
  44.   The Stupidity of Net-Zero Carbon, Oct. 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/13/the-stupidity-of-net-zero-carbon/
  45. America’s Treasure of Fossil Fuels, Update of 2011 presentation to ASME: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/11/26/americas-treasure-of-fossil-fuels/
  46.  American Dream = 100 Quadrillion BTUs per Year April 7, 2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/07/04/american-dream-100-quadrillion-btus/
  47.   Providing a Sustainable Million BTUs per Day/Person, May 17,  2022: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2022/05/17/providing-a-sustainable-million-btus-per-day-per-person-by-fuel-source/
     

Believer in Freedom to use of Energy for sustainable high quality lives