COAL - the "new black gold?"

I was wittering on, a while back, that the UK needed to re-assess its position on this fuel, of which we have scuttle-loads. An interesting article: Why coal could soon be back http://www.moneyweek.com/investments/commodities/why-coal-could-soon-be-back-14679.aspx?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Money%2BMorning

The problem PB has been carbon capture where the excess C02 is pumped into adjacent defunct oil or gas wells.SSE and Iberdrola/Scottish Power are developing methods.But they might not be ready tillabout 2011 or so.They need to build new coalfired stations nowor the competing LNG stations might get in first as these are cheaper to run.Obviously coalis best for the UKin the long run as LNG willcome from N.Afria and the Middle East,places with political instability.

Problem with using coal in the UK is the huge capital cost of installing the necessary carbon-capture infrastructure (which costs many millions)and the reluctance of companies (or governments) to invest that kind of money. The idea itself is brilliant and SHOULD be utilized - imho dyor

Hav yu ever tried ATH ? Thoroughly F....d up by the look of the SP but maybe a f....g bargain !!!!!!!

EXDIV ATH would benefit from carbon capture as they have coal supplies for example in Scotland near to several power stations.At present the power staions are trucking cheaper foreign coal from Hunterston across to E. Scotland by rail,a new line haing been opened for that purpose to bypass the Forth Rail Bridge.ATH's coal in Scotland is high on sulphur causing pollution,which can bemore easily handled by the new technology of carbon capture so that should narrow the foreign advantage.Bahman- the CO2 containing the carbon goes into disused oil and gas wells offshore.Petertee- I heard that a bolt-on kit is being designed (by I think SSE) so as to modify old systems so they avoid having to wait to build new purpose built ones.

Thank-you for identifying a possible cause of the weakness in ATH. I remember the lady CEO of Drax on Bllomberg sometime ago having confidence that the technology would catch uo very quickly for coal emissions as has been the case with gas in the past.Meanwhile the power stations buy the cheapest they can get-but how mogo can they import it cheaper on the weak £ ? Pat

PAT I also read that the sulphur price is sky-high now -its' main source is from purifying crude oil.Sulphur is important in nickel/acid-heap technology for extracting nickel from laterites,if you read the blurb on AFE's big Dutwa nickel prospect in Africa today you find they were lucky as their strike needs little sulphuric acid -which has to be made from sulphur.Now the pity is that ATH's coal is not much use as a sulphur source unless they got a process to refine it.Though the old tar works used to do it no bother just by distillation of coal I'm not sure if that's done nowadays by coal miners-they preferred to close many Scottish pits instead and imported foreign coal with less sulphur in it. While UK miners went on the dole,in N. England too of course.

Some members getting excited over the results of UK Coal UKC due this week...

Old King Coal still has a role http://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/MarketsAndSectors/Sectors/article/20090603/59bca73a-5019-11de-b1d6-0015171400aa/Old-King-Coal-still-has-a-role.jsp