Texas Clean Energy Project
One of the biggest challenges for the country is to find alternative sources of renewable and sustainable energy for creating power to power communities and industries.
The push toward cleaner energy is embraced throughout the country, and Texas is a key player at the forefront with its energy-focused stance and projects such as The Texas Clean Energy Project (TECP).
Received a $450 million grant through the U.S. Department of Energy in 2010. The TECP is the removal of coal-fired smog-generating power plants and replacing them with green and low-carbon innovations that generate Texas electric power.
The project is the development of 400-MW coke-fired Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) facility that will be able to capture 90 percent or more of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, or about 3 million tons of CO2 each year.
This is an exciting project that brings together both commercially-proven techniques for the capture of carbon dioxide emissions.
The captured CO2 will then be used to help enhance the recovery of oil from the WestTexasPermianBasin by compressing and injecting it underground.
Apart from that the project and its resultant facility will also be able of producing Urea that can be later used to fertilize.
Problems and Problems
Coal is a resource that is used to generate electric power and approximately 45 percent of all electrical power consumed in the united United States was produced by a coal-fired power plant.
The power generation process that coal is used to generate creates greenhouse gases that harm the environment.
However, the concrete efforts to cleaner coal have been faced with numerous problems and obstacles, leaving theUnited States trail behind initiatives to clean coal in Germany, China, and Japan.
One of the issues is regulations, like the TECP taking this long time to reach the stage of obtaining permits.
Another obstacle is investing in clean coal technologies and connecting the latest technological advances in this field from clean-tech companies as well as the Federal government.
Fortunately, the TECP received a substantial funding boost from the Federal government and major multinational corporations making it the biggest investment ever for clean coal development through government officials in the US government.
Another problem that the TECP could face is the backing it will receive from utilities in addition to Texas electricity companies, especially in their willingness to purchase energy directly from the TECP facility.
With Texas customers being given the option of choosing different energy sources and options, the TECP could demonstrate to utilities that there’s an opportunity for coal-based power plants that are clean, that are more affordable than the current solar and wind energy sources.
The TECP Gains Momentum
Since when the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality TCEQ issued the final air quality permit for the TECP The project has steadily gained momentum and ground of acceptance by utilities. A recent instance is the 200 MW 25-year power purchase arrangement (PPA) that was signed with the Texas Clean Energy Project and municipally owned natural gas and electric company CPS Energy ofSan Antonio.
This agreement will serve as the precursor to similar agreements to be that are expected to follow within the next few years since utility companies will recognize the significance of including Texas electric power produced from high-carbon coal power stations in their portfolio of energy. The TECP project, created through Summit Power Group in cooperation with Siemens, Fluor Corporation, and Selas Fluid Processing Corporation, is expected to create close to 2000 new jobs. The project is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2014 or early 2015.