Powder River Basin (PRB) coal in Wyoming and Montana is used to produce 18 percent of the electricity consumed in the United States. Coal production from the PRB more than doubled between 1994 and 2009. PRB coal compa...Powder River Basin (PRB) coal in Wyoming and Montana is used to produce 18 percent of the electricity consumed in the United States. Coal production from the PRB more than doubled between 1994 and 2009. PRB coal companies produced greater amounts of coal at declining real prices over much of this period through investment in equipment and production systems that achieved massive economies of scale. The bulk of PRB coal is shipped to the middle part of America from Texas in the south to Michigan in the north and New York in the east. States that consume significant amounts of PRB coal have electricity rates well below the national average. The largest industrial users of electricity are in these regions. Replacing PRB coal would require almost 5.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas per year, representing a 26 percent increase in demand. Such an increase in gas consumption would increase prices for natural gas by roughly 76 percent. In such a world, U.S. energy users would pay $107 billion more each year for electricity and natural gas. Hence, by using PRB coal, the U.S. economy avoids $107 billion per year in higher energy costs. Estimates reported in the literature indicate that the gross environmental damages from PRB coal production are $27 billion. Hence, the net social benefits of PRB coal are $80 billion per year. Given the large size and low cost of these reserves, PRB coal will likely supply societal energy needs well into the future as long as the public and their elected officials are willing to accept the environmental impacts in return for the substantial economic benefits from using PRB coal.展开更多
Petroleum coke is the?third?leading refined petroleum product export from the US behind distillate fuel oil. Legal challenges and proposals could either increase the cost or restrict the transportation of petroleum co...Petroleum coke is the?third?leading refined petroleum product export from the US behind distillate fuel oil. Legal challenges and proposals could either increase the cost or restrict the transportation of petroleum coke. This paper develops an econometric model of world markets for refined petroleum markets to estimate the effects of such restrictions. The model is used to estimate how supply, demand, trade flows, and prices would adjust under a shutdown of US petroleum coke production. The market impacts are significant, withsubstantially higher prices for jet fuel and petroleum coke, significantly higher prices for gasoline and other products, and sharply lower prices for residual fuel oil. Over a four-year simulation of the model, the US petroleum trade balance deteriorates by $85 billion and consumers pay over $187 and $376 billion more for refined petroleum products in the US and the rest of the world respectively.展开更多
文摘Powder River Basin (PRB) coal in Wyoming and Montana is used to produce 18 percent of the electricity consumed in the United States. Coal production from the PRB more than doubled between 1994 and 2009. PRB coal companies produced greater amounts of coal at declining real prices over much of this period through investment in equipment and production systems that achieved massive economies of scale. The bulk of PRB coal is shipped to the middle part of America from Texas in the south to Michigan in the north and New York in the east. States that consume significant amounts of PRB coal have electricity rates well below the national average. The largest industrial users of electricity are in these regions. Replacing PRB coal would require almost 5.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas per year, representing a 26 percent increase in demand. Such an increase in gas consumption would increase prices for natural gas by roughly 76 percent. In such a world, U.S. energy users would pay $107 billion more each year for electricity and natural gas. Hence, by using PRB coal, the U.S. economy avoids $107 billion per year in higher energy costs. Estimates reported in the literature indicate that the gross environmental damages from PRB coal production are $27 billion. Hence, the net social benefits of PRB coal are $80 billion per year. Given the large size and low cost of these reserves, PRB coal will likely supply societal energy needs well into the future as long as the public and their elected officials are willing to accept the environmental impacts in return for the substantial economic benefits from using PRB coal.
文摘Petroleum coke is the?third?leading refined petroleum product export from the US behind distillate fuel oil. Legal challenges and proposals could either increase the cost or restrict the transportation of petroleum coke. This paper develops an econometric model of world markets for refined petroleum markets to estimate the effects of such restrictions. The model is used to estimate how supply, demand, trade flows, and prices would adjust under a shutdown of US petroleum coke production. The market impacts are significant, withsubstantially higher prices for jet fuel and petroleum coke, significantly higher prices for gasoline and other products, and sharply lower prices for residual fuel oil. Over a four-year simulation of the model, the US petroleum trade balance deteriorates by $85 billion and consumers pay over $187 and $376 billion more for refined petroleum products in the US and the rest of the world respectively.
