Coal and Nuclear Solutions Could Halt UK Energy Crisis

Might King Coal help fuel West Midlands power? West Midlands Business Council thinks so.

In its response to Advan-tage West Midlands’ regional economic strategy, the WMBC says the Staffordshire and Warwickshire coalfields are “one of this region’s greatest natural resources”.

And it goes on: “The industry has gone through a steep decline but pressing energy needs provide new opportunities for coal.”

The decision of the Government to convene a Coal Forum – bringing together electricity suppliers and coal producers to find solutions to secure the long term future of domestic coal production – could be “a significant step forward for the commercial viability of the Staffordshire coalfield”.

The report admits: “Concerns have been expressed about coal due to carbon emissions.

“However, clean coal technology exists to address these issues and in November 2006 plans for a new clean coal-fired power plant in Norway was announced which, it was claimed, would capture 95 per cent of all greenhouse gases emitted.

“We would encourage Advantage West Midlands with the business community to engage with the Coal Forum to see if there are any actions – through capital infrastructure or business support – from the regional perspective to help fulfil the potential of the Staffordshire coalfield.”

Commercial opportunities existed on a different front.

The report notes: “To address carbon emissions, the concept of carbon sequestration has been developed. This means carbon dioxide is injected into deep, unminable coal seams. A particular advantage is coal seams can store several times more carbon dioxide than the equivalent volume of a conventional gas reservoir because coal has a large surface area. And as this process displaces methane it can be recovered as an energy source and sold to offset costs.”

It is a market which should be explored, says WMBC.

The report also sees a bright future for nuclear energy in the UK, and suggests West Midlands manufacturers can reap the benefits.

It states: “Investment in new nuclear capacity would help to sustain a diverse electricity generation mix, by reducing the level of UK gas consumption and imports.”

“Because of the high need for secure and reliable energy supplies, the construction, servicing and development of nuclear power stations will need to be undertaken, to a large extent, within the UK with easy and quick access to the facilities.

“This provides a unique opportunity for manufacturing industry in the West Midlands. With the region at the heart of UK manufacturing, it can become a centre for construction, servicing and development for nuclear new build facilities.”

WMBC also sees emissions trading as a major opportunity.

“However, too many businesses have not been given technical or even introductory advice as to how carbon emissions trading can assist businesses. This lack of knowledge is combined with widespread business concerns the Carbon Trust is not fully meeting needs in energy efficiency advice.”

(c) 2007 Birmingham Post; Birmingham (UK). Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.