West Virginia and the Base Load Model of Grid Management Versus the Flexible Grid
[button link=”https://ohiorivervalleyinstitute.naughty-cat.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/West-Virginia-and-the-Base-Load-Model-of-Grid-Management-Versus-the-Flexible-Grid-FORMAT.pdf” type=”big” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] Download report[/button] [button link=”https://ohiorivervalleyinstitute.naughty-cat.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Base-Load-v3-4-pager-FORMAT.pdf” type=”big” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] Download four-page summary[/button] [button link=”https://ohiorivervalleyinstitute.naughty-cat.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Base-Load-v3-One-Pager-FORMAT.pdf” type=”big” color=”red” newwindow=”yes”] Download one-page summary[/button] As West Virginia and other states grapple with data center-driven electricity demand growth and rate hikes, transitioning to a “flexible grid” model could lower rates, boost reliability, and slash carbon emissions. West […]
Why are West Virginia power bills so high?
There are several central reasons why West Virginia’s electricity rates have soared recently. The short answer is coal.
Why Trying to Save Coal Is Costing Us More Than We Think
Let’s talk about coal. Yes—coal, the black rock that powered much of America’s past. Lately, some leaders have been trying to bring it back in a big way. But here’s the truth: no matter what policies are put in place, the coal industry is on its way out—and trying to prop it up is only […]
Coal Plant Community Playbook
An overview of federal, state, and local resources, as well as best practice examples, for communities facing coal-fired power plant retirements.
Bitcoin Mining Breathes Life into Zombie Coal Plants
Bitcoin is on the verge of going mainstream, with some companies — and even countries — recognizing the cryptocurrency as legal tender. The market cap of Bitcoin now surpasses both Facebook and Tesla, and it also recently became the 13th largest currency in the world. At the same time, the dizzying highs (and occasional lows) […]
Another round of Appalachian coal plant retirements may be imminent
January 25, 2022 may become the day the music died for a number of the remaining Appalachian coal-fired power plants. That’s when PJM, the regional transmission operator (RTO) that manages wholesale energy markets in all or parts of 13 mid-Atlantic and midwestern states and the District of Columbia, will hold a “capacity auction” to lock […]
Fewer Jobs, Higher Electric Bills if WVPSC Mitchell Ruling Prevails
The West Virginia Public Service Commission’s ruling on the case regarding the Mitchell power plant will, if it is implemented, result in fewer jobs and less prosperity for Marshall County and surrounding counties, it will needlessly raise West Virginians’ utility bills, and it will steal from a community that has been distressed for too long […]
Options and Opportunities for Coal Plant Communities: Pennsylvania and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)
Revenue from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) could aid coal communities facing plant closures and energy market changes. ORVI Research Fellow Joseph Cullen outlines a path forward.
Appalachia Could Address Poverty and Build Worker Power by Reforesting Mine-scarred Land
This post is the second in a four-part series based on a recent ORVI report on abandoned mine land (AML) issues. Figures cited below can be found in the accompanying report. Abandoned coal mines have damaged thousands of acres of land, polluted hundreds of miles of streams, and are emitting tons of greenhouse gases. In […]
Jobs and equitable transition: Bridging the chasm between rhetoric and action
There was a time when the sight of rows of office workers hammering away at their Friden adding machines would have sent me into paroxysms of delight because I, the Victor Comptometer salesman, had a new and better “programmable calculator” that could kick the Friden’s ass. I was a young 1970s college graduate entering the […]