Tag: natural gas

A Conversation On Tax Revenues From Coal, Natural Gas

On this episode of The Legislature Today, higher demand for coal and natural gas, as well as higher prices, produced a severance tax windfall for the state over the past few years. But prices have fallen, and with it, tax revenues. To get a better idea of where things stand, Curtis Tate spoke with Kelly Allen, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy.

On this episode of The Legislature Today, higher demand for coal and natural gas, as well as higher prices, produced a severance tax windfall for the state over the past few years. But prices have fallen, and with it, tax revenues.

To get a better idea of where things stand, Curtis Tate spoke with Kelly Allen, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy.

In the House, among the bills on third reading Thursday included a proposal to allow schools to hire trained security guards. The bill led to a social debate over the issue of training in systemic racism. Randy Yohe has more.

In the Senate, the chamber advanced 13 bills. They sent Senate Bill 596 to committee. That bill is the same as House Bill 5045, which would give the EPA assurances that carbon capture and storage will not pollute groundwater. The House version was amended to be fused with the Senate bill.

Also, House Democrats held a press conference to highlight their priorities going forward. Randy Yohe has that report.

Finally, the House of Delegates held a public hearing on a bill that would restrict transgender West Virginians access to bathrooms, changing rooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.

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The Legislature Today is West Virginia’s only television/radio simulcast devoted to covering the state’s 60-day regular legislative session.

Watch or listen to new episodes Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Capito Bill Would Overturn Biden’s Pause On LNG Export Approvals

Last month, the U.S. Energy Department said it would stop considering new applications for liquefied natural gas export terminals to countries with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement.

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito has a bill that would undo the Biden administration’s pause on approving new export terminals for liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Capito introduced the Natural Gas Export Expansion Act a year ago.

Last month, the U.S. Energy Department said it would stop considering new applications for LNG export terminals to countries with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement.

Capito opposes the policy but said it would be difficult to get her bill past the Democrats in the Senate, as well as President Joe Biden.

“So we’ll keep pushing the legislation, but the realities are as much as I’d like to see it, as a political reality, it would be very tough,” she said.

An Energy Department official testified in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Thursday that LNG exports to U.S. allies would continue and already permitted export terminals would still get built.

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., the chairman of the energy committee, wants the Biden administration to reverse the pause on new approvals.

The Energy Department projects that even with the pause, U.S. LNG exports will double by 2030.

According to a report by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis Thursday, LNG demand is projected to decline in Europe and Asia.

Instead, the report said, the biggest buyers of additional LNG exports will be oil and gas companies and commodities traders.

Prolonged Arctic Air Behind Record U.S. Gas Consumption In January

The lower 48 states consumed a record 141.5 billion cubic feet of gas on Jan. 16. That beat the previous record of 137.8 billion cubic feet on Dec. 23, 2022.

Natural gas consumption set a record in January.

The lower 48 states consumed a record 141.5 billion cubic feet of gas on Jan. 16. That beat the previous record of 137.8 billion cubic feet on Dec. 23, 2022, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The 2022 record occurred during Winter Storm Elliott, when temperatures plunged into the single digits and below zero right before the Christmas holiday.

The agency attributes the high consumption last month to a prolonged period of Arctic air over much of the country.

Demand for residential and commercial heating increased, as well as for electricity.

Gas consumption averaged more than 130 billion cubic feet a day from Jan. 14 to Jan. 21.

West Virginia is the nation’s fourth largest producer of gas, according to federal data.

Budgets, Taxes And Clean Energy Jobs On This West Virginia Morning

On this West Virginia Morning, state lawmakers are mulling over countless tax proposals that would directly affect West Virginians and their wallets. On Friday’s episode of The Legislature Today, Randy Yohe spoke with House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, and Kelly Allen, the executive director at the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy, to discuss budgets and taxes.

On this West Virginia Morning, state lawmakers are mulling over countless tax proposals that would directly affect West Virginians and their wallets. On Friday’s episode of The Legislature Today, Randy Yohe spoke with House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, R-Clay, and Kelly Allen, the executive director at the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy, to discuss budgets and taxes.

Also, in this show, we have the latest story from The Allegheny Front – a public radio program that reports on environmental issues in the region. We listen to their story about replacing coal and natural gas jobs with clean energy jobs.

West Virginia Morning is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting which is solely responsible for its content.

Support for our news bureaus comes from Shepherd University.

Eric Douglas is our producer.

Listen to West Virginia Morning weekdays at 7:43 a.m. on WVPB Radio or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. #WVMorning

Presentation: Renewables, Gas Poised To Dominate U.S. Power Grid

Curtis Wilkerson, founder and CEO of Orion Strategies, a public relations firm, said wind and solar are now the cheapest form of electricity.

What does the future hold for electricity generation? Renewables and gas will dominate the grid in the years to come, according to a presentation given to the Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia.

Curtis Wilkerson, founder and CEO of Orion Strategies, a public relations firm, said wind and solar are now the cheapest form of electricity.

“One of the things that is a large misnomer is that people think that renewables are expensive. They’re now the cheapest form of electricity,” he said. “When you look at what’s called levelized cost of electricity – that means from construction through its natural lifespan – and wind and sun don’t cost anything.”

Wilkerson said the future power needs of the country will include growth in building electrification and electric vehicles, as well as data centers.

And what was considered baseload power in the past, namely coal and nuclear, will be overtaken by renewables and gas.

“Solar in particular, has fallen 90 percent in the last 10 years, the cost. And the next cheapest form of electricity, which is largely dispatchable, is natural gas,” he said. “Notice how much more expensive coal is and how much more expensive nuclear is. And that gives you why if the projections for the United States, energy supply or electricity supply will be renewables and natural gas for many years to come.”

Gas currently supplies about 40 percent of the country’s electricity. Big growth in renewables, especially solar, is expected over the next two years.

But as Wilkerson told the trade association, electricity demand will grow, and gas can capture some of the growth along with renewables.  

Appalachian Power Could Take Legal Action Against PSC, Chief Says

In a decision Tuesday, the PSC denied the recovery of $232 million of the $553 million the company sought from electricity customers to account for higher fuel and purchased power costs from 2021 to last year.

Appalachian Power said it’s exploring legal options against the West Virginia Public Service Commission (PSC).

In a decision Tuesday, the PSC denied the recovery of $232 million of the $553 million the company sought from electricity customers to account for higher fuel and purchased power costs from 2021 to last year.

The PSC did allow the recovery of $321 million over 10 years. That amounts to $2.50 a month on the average residential customer’s bill, and they will begin paying that on Sept. 1.

In a statement, Appalachian Power President and Operating Chief Aaron Walker called the commission’s ruling “disappointing and deeply troubling.”

“Through the information and facts we presented to the commission, and the relevant legal standards, it is our position that no disallowance was warranted,” Walker said. “We are studying the order in detail and will explore all legal remedies available to us.”

The PSC paid an outside consultant to review Appalachian Power’s fuel procurement and power plant management practices during the past three years. It concluded that the company did not respond quickly enough to changes in the coal market, nor did it run its power plants when it was most economical to do so.

The company countered that it had managed its operations the best it could under challenging conditions. The economic rebound in 2021 led to a surge in demand for electricity, pushing up the price of coal and natural gas.

In 2021 and 2022, Appalachian Power and other utilities found themselves short of the coal they needed to operate their plants.

The company sought approval of a settlement that would have spread the cost out over 20 years and reduced the requested amount to $503 million.

The Kanawaha County Commission was among those opposing the settlement. The commission asked the PSC to reject the company’s entire request.

Still, commissioners applauded the PSC’s decision on Wednesday.

“It sends a clear message that excessive rate hikes will not go unchallenged, and utility companies must be held accountable for their actions,” Commissioner Ben Salango said in a statement. “We will continue our fight for fair utility rates that reflect the economic realities facing our community.”

Appalachian Power is an underwriter of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

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