Benchmarking Air Emissions Of the 100 Largest Electric Power Producers in the United States

Transcription

1 Benchmarking Air Emissions Of the 100 Largest Electric Power Producers in the United States May 2014 Summary Presentation Report Authors: Christopher Van Atten Amlan Saha Lea Reynolds Lily Hoffman-Andrews Contributors:

2 2014 Benchmarking Report: Key Findings In 2012, power plant NOx and SO 2 emissions were 74 percent and 79 percent lower, respectively, than they were in 1990 when Congress passed major amendments to the Clean Air Act. In 2012, power plant CO 2 emissions were 13 percent higher than they were in However, emissions have declined in recent years. Between 2008 and 2012, power plant CO 2 emissions decreased by 13 percent, and total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions have decreased by over 8 percent between 2008 and Some of the factors driving this trend include slow economic growth, energy efficiency improvements, and the displacement of coal generation by natural gas and renewable energy resources. Download the full 2014 Benchmarking Air Emissions report and plant level data at: Mercury emissions from power plants have decreased 51 percent since 2000, and will decline further as the firstever federal limits on mercury and other hazardous air pollutants from coal-fired power plants go into effect in

3 2014 Benchmarking Report: Rankings by Generation Generation (million MWh; Top 20 Power Producers Shown) Exelon NextEra Energy Tennessee Valley Authority Entergy Calpine Dominion US Corps of Engineers Xcel Ameren PSEG US Bureau of Reclamation DTE Energy Coal Gas Oil Nuclear Hydro Other/Renewable Note: Only the top 20 producers shown. *On April 30, 2014, MidAmerican Energy Holdings (MidAmerican) changed its name to Berkshire Hathaway Energy. 3

4 2014 Benchmarking Report: Emission Contributions SO 2 (million ton) NOx (million ton) Mercury (Hg) (ton) CO 2 (billion ton) 100% Percent of industry emissions 91% 85% 88% 86% 75% % % largest producers No. of producers Tennessee Valley Authority Air pollution emissions from power plants are highly concentrated among a small number of producers. For example, nearly a quarter of the electric power industry s SO 2 and CO 2 emissions are emitted by just three and five top 100 producers, respectively. *On April 30, 2014, MidAmerican Energy Holdings (MidAmerican) changed its name to Berkshire Hathaway Energy. 4

5 2014 Benchmarking Report: Rankings by Total Emissions SO 2 ('000 tons) NO x ('000 tons) Tennessee Valley DTE Energy Ameren Tennessee Valley Xcel Entergy CO 2 (million tons) Mercury (tons) Tennessee Valley Ameren Ameren DTE Energy Tennessee Valley Authority Note: Only the top 10 for each category shown. *On April 30, 2014, MidAmerican Energy Holdings (MidAmerican) changed its name to Berkshire Hathaway Energy. 5

6 2014 Benchmarking Report: State-by-State CO 2 Emissions Texas Florida Pennsylvania Total CO 2 Emissions by State (million ton; top 5 and bottom 5 are shown) Indiana Ohio CO 2 Emission Rate All Sources (lb/mwh; top 5 and bottom 5 are shown) Kentucky Wyoming West Virginia Indiana North Dakota 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 2,099 2,012 1,989 1,920 1,864 Rhode Island South Dakota Maine Idaho Vermont Maine Oregon Washington Idaho Vermont Electricity Exporters/Importers (2010 Net Trade Index; top 5 exporters and importers are shown) E X P O R T E R S I M P O R T E R S Wyoming North Dakota West Virginia Montana New Hampshire California Maryland Virginia Idaho Delaware % 237% 229% 196% 196% 72% 61% 59% 47% 45% Total in-state supply of electricity as % share of total in-state consumption needs CO 2 Emission Rate Fossil (lb/mwh; top 5 and bottom 5 are shown) North Dakota Montana South Dakota Wyoming Kansas California Rhode Island Maine Idaho Connecticut 0 1,000 2,000 3, ,382 2,317 2,293 2,269 2,251 6

7 2014 Benchmarking Report: Electric Sector Emission Trends Annual Electricity Generation and Emission Trends (Indexed; 2000 = 100) Natural Gas Generation Renewable Generation* = 100 CO Total Generation NO x SO 2 Coal Generation *Includes hydroelectric, wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, and other renewable sources The electric power sector has made significant progress in terms of reducing its NOx and SO 2 emissions over the past decade. 7

8 2014 Benchmarking Report: Regional CO 2 Emission Rate Trends CO 2 Emission Rates of Select Power Producers in Three Regions (all fuels across entire portfolio; lb/mwh) Change Southeast 0% Midwest Southwest/West ,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 Dominion Arkansas Electric Coop TVA -19% -31% -25% 2,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 Hoosier Energy Great River Energy Asso. Elec. Coop Nebraska PPD -8% -18% -25% -10% -24% 2,500 2,000 1,500 1,000 OGE Xcel PNM Resources Pinnacle West -15% -18% -15% -15% -41% El Paso Electric 500 Entergy -40% % Note: The X-axes in the charts above do not denote equal intervals. Data for years 2001, 2002, 2005, and 2007 are not shown in the charts above. Over time a wide range of factors influences a company s CO 2 emissions: plant utilization, share of low-carbon generation, new builds, nuclear uprates, plant divestitures and retirements, and mergers and acquisitions. 8