The global installed capacity of coal-fired power generation is expected to increase from 1,673.1 GW in 2012 to 2.057.6 GW by 2019, according to a report from Transparency Market Research. Coal-fired electrical-generation plants are being started up in Europe—and comparatively clean gas-fired generating capacity is being shut down.
Coal electric generation isn't going away anytime soon. The only reason coal may look at the moment like it is declining in the US is because at the moment natural gas generation in the US is less expensive than coal. But in Europe, coal is less expensive and, remarkably, generating companies respond by turning up coal and turning down natural gas.
Doesn't need to be going away for my argument to hold, as long as the relative proportions are favorable -- and as far as I can tell, most of that GIC delta in coal is happening in the developing world, where I don't see too many people buying Teslas. Europe and the US project new capacity disproportionately in the form of renewables; coal is going up in Europe, but less quickly.
This isn't ideal; I'm generally long on wind and solar, but if I had my way we'd be building Gen IV nuclear reactors as fast as we could lay down concrete. But neither is it as g...
If it's worth saying, but not worth its own post (even in Discussion), then it goes here.