The Methanol Industry at a Crossroads
Global market volatility and underdeveloped supply chains could complicate the methanol industry’s massive North American buildout plans.
Appalachianization Update: How The Data Center Boom is Making America’s Economy Look Like Appalachia’s
Last December, I wrote a blog post titled, “The Appalachianization of America’s Economy”, in which I observed that the AI and data center boom, which has recently been a principal driver of overall GDP growth, seems to be giving rise to a recurrence of a phenomenon previously seen in Appalachia’s natural gas regions – a […]
The PSC Must Do What’s Right for West Virginia
Do you know the old advice to investors – “Buy low and sell high”? Well, building a new gas-fired power plant right now is doing exactly the opposite. This is the worst time in history to be paying for construction of a new natural gas-fired power plant. It’s buying when the cost of buying has […]
Appalachian Gas: Near-Term and Long-Term Trends
Analysts expect natural gas production in Appalachia to grow in the coming decades, but the immediate outlook is a murkier prospect.
Data Centers 101
The race towards data centers is already reshaping energy systems, land use, and local economies across Appalachia.
Data Center Expansion Continues a Legacy of Fossil Exploitation
Data center projects in Appalachia would use a staggering amount of fracked gas and could harm communities’ health and the environment.
West Virginia regulators should deny Mon Power’s gas plant proposal in Monongalia County.
Due to the project’s exorbitant cost, the disinterest shown by FirstEnergy in seeking a special tariff to insulate existing customers from data center-driven rate increases, and the utilities’ failure to adequately explore less costly alternative means of ensuring reliable and cost effective service, the Commission should not approve the companies’ plan to construct a new 1.2 GW gas-fired power plant.
Proposed “Blue” Ammonia Could Cost Taxpayers More Than $5 Billion Each Year
Taxpayers could be on the hook for billions of dollars worth of gas-fired ammonia production.
Statement on Pennsylvania House Bill 1834
House Bill 1834 helps protect against the direct costs of data centers, but it doesn’t fully insulate consumers against indirect costs.
Whoops Again?
A pair of Ohio River Valley gas plant projects would be the largest, most expensive energy developments in US history. But as the price of gas power soars and demand remains uncertain, there’s a chance that taxpayers and utility customers could get stuck with a big bill.