Supreme Court Mercury Ruling Will Have Uneven Impact on the Pollution Control Industry
The Supreme Court in a 5-4 split ruling on Monday rejected the Environmental Protection Agency’s MATS rules governing toxic air pollutants including mercury. This ruling will have immediate consequences for the air pollution industry, but the impact will be uneven. It will affect the suppliers of certain types of equipment but not others. There are short-range and long-range impacts which are both negative and positive according to the analysis in the Mercury Air Reduction Market published by the McIlvaine Company. (www.mcilvainecompany.com)
Justice Scalia, writing for the court’s majority, said “The agency must consider cost—including, most importantly, cost of compliance—before deciding whether regulation is appropriate and necessary.” “It is not rational, never mind ‘appropriate,’ to impose billions of dollars in economic costs in return for a few dollars in health or environmental benefits. Statutory context supports this reading.”
The EPA had argued that it was not required to take costs into account when it made the initial determination to regulate. But the agency added that it had done so later in setting emissions standards and that, in any event, the benefits far outweighed the cost .The two sides had very different understandings of the costs and benefits involved. Industry groups said the government had imposed annual costs of $9.6 billion to achieve about $6 million in benefits. The agency said the costs yielded tens of billions of dollars in benefits.
There is a good possibility that there will be little change in the market. “Given the fact that the EPA has already done a detailed cost benefit analysis justifying the rule, and the fact that the majority of the affected industries have already invested heavily in compliance, there is a good chance that the D.C. Circuit will allow the rule to remain on the books” while the agency makes its revisions, said Patrick Parenteau, an expert on environmental law at Vermont Law School.
If the rule is stricken during the re-write period, the largest and most immediate negative impact would be the loss of sales of activated carbon and other chemicals to aid in the mercury capture. There will be negative impacts on suppliers of trona and lime. This rule could delay revenues by several years. On the other hand, most of the equipment to capture the air toxics has already been installed. Also there are State regulations which require mercury reduction as well as limits on other pollutants. These lessen the impact.
Coal-fired generators are subject to other rules which require more efficient air pollution control equipment and more are lurking. The States have the responsibility for meeting ambient air quality levels for particulate (PM2.5) SO2, NOx and ozone. Substantial emission reduction of pollutants at coal-fired power plants is the most cost effective route for the States to proceed. It is also the most politically popular as compared to prohibiting home barbecue grills.
Over time the decision to include cost could be positive for the air pollution industry. The cost of mercury reduction with the present technology is far less than anticipated at the time the rules were drafted. Therefore, any revised rule is likely to be as stringent as the one being stricken.
In fact more stringent rules would be justified. The cost per pound of mercury removed is a function of the efficiency. The first 70 percent of the mercury can be removed very cost effectively. At the time of the background analysis for the rules it was estimated that the cost per pound to move from 85 to 95 percent efficiency would be ten times that for lower efficiencies. This is no longer the case. High removal efficiencies can be cost effectively achieved.
If cost is also included in climate change rules, the capture of CO2 will be hard to justify. There are two reasons:
• Benefits to U.S. citizens are less than to people living along the equator
• The benefits are long term
Any cost benefit analysis of CO2 capture limited to U.S. citizens in the short term will compare unfavorably to other investments. The Supreme Court ruling was narrow and focused just on the language in the Clean Air Act relative to mercury. Nevertheless, there is a precedent set which could be the difference between shutting down and operating many coal-fired power plants. Scott Segal of Bracewell & Giuliani, said the decision should come as a warning to the Obama administration as the EPA prepares to unveil the climate change regulations this summer.
CO2 reduction can be cost effective if it is tied into efficiency. Extracting waste heat from the flue gas will be attractive. As a result, modest CO2 reduction rules could have a positive effect on the industry. Coal-fired power plants have other opportunities to become attractively green. One is the recovery of rare earths from flyash. Another is to combust municipal and sewage waste. Use of treated municipal wastewater with zero liquid discharge would mean that a coal-fired power plant has a positive impact on waterways.
For more on: N056 Mercury Air Reduction Market
Renewable Energy Briefs
DTE Energy to Issue RFP for Large Solar Installation
DTE Energy announced it will issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to develop a solar generating facility for DTE Energy.
DTE is seeking proposals for a solar installation with 5 to 50 megawatts of capacity. The RFP was to be issued Wednesday, June 24 and notices of intent to bid are due by Wednesday, July 22, 2015.
The solar generating facility must be in DTE Energy's service area and operational by December 31, 2016. DTE welcomes proposals for projects within the city of Detroit as well as surrounding communities.
DTE Energy currently owns and operates more than 20 large solar installations in Michigan, including projects at Ford Motor Co. headquarters in Dearborn and Monroe County Community College in Monroe. The company recently began construction of a 1.1-megawatt solar installation near Domino's Farms, just east of Ann Arbor. The project, which will have the capacity to power nearly 200 homes, will be completed and operational by the end of the year.
First Solar Modules to Power Landmark 200 MW Solar Photovoltaic Project in Dubai
First Solar, Inc. announced that it has signed an agreement to supply its high performance photovoltaic (PV) modules to power the 200 megawatt (MW)AC second phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.
Earlier this year, a consortium led by ACWA Power, a leading water and power developer, owner and operator based in Saudi Arabia, and TSK, a Spanish engineering and construction company, was selected by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) to develop, construct, own and operate the independent power project. According to the consortium, the project's tariff of $5.84 per kilowatt-hour establishes a new global benchmark, reducing the cost of solar electricity by over 20 percent.
Significantly, the utility scale solar plant will be the largest facility of its kind in the Middle East when completed in early 2017. The plant will produce enough energy to power 30,000 average homes in the UAE and will displace over 469,650 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. The project will be powered by over 2.36 million First Solar modules, compared to the 152,880 that were installed in the 13 MWAC first phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. The plant will be built over an area of almost 4.5 million square meters, sufficient to cover as many as 100 soccer pitches.
Everbright International Wins Shandong Xintal Household Waste to Energy Project
China Everbright International Limited is pleased to announce it has won the bid for Shandong Xintai Household Waste-to-Energy Project, with the leading score in the overall bidding process. Xintai Project is the ninth household waste-to-energy project that the group has invested in and constructed in Shandong Province.
Xintai Project will be constructed on a BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) basis for a concession period of 30 years. The project has a designed daily household waste processing capacity of 900 tons and will be constructed in two phases. Project Phase I has a designed daily household waste processing capacity of 600 tons, with a total investment of approximately RMB339 million. All gas emissions will fully comply with the €2000 Standard and it is expected to generate approximately 70,000,000 kWh of green electricity annually.
Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon Unlocks Chinese Inward Investment and British Export Opportunities
The delivery of the £1 billion Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon will kick-start a program of Chinese investment into UK infrastructure and the pursuit of a tidal lagoon development program that could see British expertise and technology exported to Asia. Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay Plc (TLSB) has named China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd, one of the world’s largest specialist marine engineering contractors and investors, as its preferred bidder for a marine works package that will include the construction of the six mile lagoon wall in Swansea Bay. As well as committing to approximately 50 percent UK content for the delivery of the package, CHEC has established a UK subsidiary company and has set out its vision to pursue a UK infrastructure investment program over the next decade. CHEC’s investment strategy will include a focus on further tidal lagoon infrastructure projects in the UK.
Further to the work program on the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon, CHEC will sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Tidal Lagoon Power Ltd, the project’s developers, for the development of tidal lagoons in Asia, potentially opening a major new export channel for British expertise and technology.
Tidal Lagoon (Swansea Bay) plc is a special purpose vehicle company established specifically to construct, own and operate the world’s first tidal lagoon power plant at Swansea Bay. The 320 MW installed capacity project, developed by Tidal Lagoon Power Ltd, has a design life of 120 years and a net annual power output of over 500 GWh; enough to meet the annual electricity requirement of over 155,000 homes, or over 90 percent of homes in the Swansea Bay area.
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Joins Growing CalCharge Coalition
Through the public-private consortium CalCharge, energy storage companies will soon have unprecedented and streamlined access to three U.S. Department of Energy national labs in the Bay Area — giving them a major competitive advantage in the fast-growing battery industry.
CalCharge, which is designed to accelerate the development and deployment of energy storage technologies, is welcoming Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) as its newest partner member. LLNL joins Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, completing CalCharge’s trifecta of national labs in the Bay Area.
CalCharge and Livermore Lab are developing a standard cooperative research agreement that would allow CalCharge member’s access to Livermore Lab’s world-class scientists and facilities. The agreement, known as a Collaborative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), would complement Cal Charge CRADAs already in place with Berkeley Lab and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The CRADA streamlines the process for industry looking to partner with the national laboratories.
For more information on Renewable Energy Projects and Update please visit http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/brochures/Renewable_Energy_Projects_Brochure/renewable_energy_projects_brochure.htm
Headlines for Utility E-Alert – June 26, 2015
UTILITY E-ALERT

#1229– June 26, 2015
Table of Contents
COAL – US

• LA Dept. of Water & Power ready to sell its Percentage in Arizona Coal-fired Power Plant
• Safe Basin closure Update by Duke Energy
• Arizona Public Service settles Pollution Suit over Navajo Coal-fired Power Plant
• Alabama Power reaches Coal-fired Power Plant Emissions Control Settlement

COAL – WORLD

• BHEL commissions 250 MW Unit of NTPC's Bongaigaon Power Plant in India
• Sharyn Gol JSC (Mongolia) announces the Commissioning of its Coal Wash Plant and Execution of an Agreement to Export Washed Coal to South Korea
• Pakistan approves construction of 1,400 MW Coal-based Power Project in Thar

GAS/OIL – US

• Wisconsin Public Service seeking Air Permit to upgrade Two Units at Fox Energy Center

GAS/OIL – WORLD

• AP Transco buys out GVK Power's Plant in Andhra Pradesh
• Lotte E&C wins US$230 Million Order from Indonesia
• Siemens supplying a Gas and Steam Turbine Package to Ciner Kazan Soda in Turkey

NUCLEAR
• EDF granted Permission to operate Unit 3 of Tricastin Nuclear Power
• DOE issues remaining $1.8 Billion Nuclear Loan Guarantee for Plant Vogtle

BUSINESS

• Novinda names Michael Rosenberg New CEO
• Entergy New Orleans in line to get Low-cost Power from Arkansas Power Plant
• PetroVietnam acquires Chevron’s Assets in Vietnam
• Hearing set on 1,050 MW Gas-fired Power Plant for Salem Township, PA
• $20 Billion Market for Air Pollution Solutions

HOT TOPIC HOUR

• Hot Gas Filter Discussion will be continued on July 2
• “Total Solutions” is the Hot Topic Hour on August 6
• Upcoming Hot Topic Hours
For more information on the Utility Tracking System, click on: http://home.mcilvainecompany.com/index.php/databases/2-uncategorised/89-42ei
McIlvaine Hot Topic Hour Registration
On Thursdays at 10:00 a.m. Central time, McIlvaine hosts a 90 minute web meeting on important energy and pollution control subjects. These Webinars are free of charge to owner/operators of the plants. They are also free to McIlvaine Subscribers of Power Plant Air Quality Decisions and Utility Tracking System. The cost for others is $300.00 per webinar.
See below for information on upcoming Hot Topic Hours. We welcome your input relative to suggested additions.

DATE SUBJECT DESCRIPTION
July 2, 2015 Hot Gas Filtration More Information
July 23, 2015 Mercury Removal Options More Information
August 6, 2015 Gas Turbine Emission Control More Information
August 20, 2015 Total Solution Options More Information
Click here for the Subscriber and Power Plant or Cement Plant Owner/Operator Registration Form
Click here for the Non-Subscribers Registration Form
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Bob McIlvaine
President
847-784-0012 ext 112
rmcilvaine@mcilvainecompany.com
www.mcilvainecompany.com