Gas-fired combined-cycle power plants (CCPPs) will dominate the US power generation market, as economics of low-cost gas generation and more stringent emissions regulation continue to erode the competitiveness of coal-fired plants, forecasts John Wilson, vice president for product sales Americas at Siemens.
Coal-to-gas substitution in the US power generation sector is set to decline amid a rise in natural gas prices beyond 2012 levels. Prices for gas delivered to power plant operators during 2013 will average about 22 percent higher than during 2012, while the average cost of delivered coal will go up only 1 percent, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts.
The BRIT countries – Brazil, Russia, [India] and Turkey – are what E.ON Generation has singled out as growth markets.
"Europe is still our core market but we are not seeing the greatest growth in this area at the moment. You might want to call the UK 'an exception', but it is the BRIT countries that we at E.ON target as growth markets," Jim Lightfoot, director fleet management Gas CCGT at E.ON Generation told Gas to Power Journal in an interview.
South Korean utilities are stepping up gas imports in an effort to avert the risk of power cuts following the shut-down of nuclear reactors. South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-Sik reiterated a warning, highlighting the risk of possible power shortages and rolling blackouts triggered by forecast of a harsh winter.