Why Douglas Healy Believes the Mid-West is Crucial for Energy

Americans are amid a transformation of the nation's energy supply. The old methods of using nuclear power and coal-powered plants are giving way to a new generation of energy production plants that use wind, solar, and natural gas.

Sustainable energy reduces the impact of pollution, providing a healthier form of power generation and independence from foreign oil reserves. That's the primary reason that politicians are pushing for a change. However, the current grid is a tested system that brings uninterrupted service to millions of businesses and residences. The new one will have less redundancy, making the network more prone to failure, shortages, and outages.

Natural Gas and Solar Power Lead the Way

A large percentage of future electrical generation supply will come from plants that are powered by the sun or by natural gas.

The Mid-West of the United States contains 30% of the country's electricity plants. 33% of the nation's nuclear power generation also occurs in the area, making it particularly relevant to the energy source diversity of the national grid. Douglas Healy, the energy expert, believes that this area of the country will play a strategic role in the nation's future power plans.

The diversity of energy sources is a new topic that's gaining national attention. The proposed plan by the EIA suggests that 100% of America's power sources will be sustainable by 2050. There will be no more coal-powered or nuclear sources, which are crucial in the current system.

Douglas Healy notes that 45% of the country's gas fields are in the Mid-West so the region, with its vast networks of pipelines, will be critical in supplying the country with power.

Coal Loses Favor

Coal has been in use for so long because it has four primary benefits that make it an excellent source of power production.

• There's a massive supply of coal throughout the country.
• Coal has a high load factor.
• Companies can invest in coal production inexpensively.
• Coal provides an uninterrupted service for electrical production.

The downside is the damage to the environment and health. Politicians are opting to shutter all production to switch to alternatives like solar, wind turbines, and natural gas. The consensus is that despite the benefits, the drawbacks now outweigh them for coal; at least in part.

With coal and nuclear on the outs, investments have been pouring into the alternatives.

Coal is dropping steadily, and natural gas and wind are the fastest-rising. The transformation is occurring very rapidly, which is causing some concern in the energy-hungry states of California and Texas. Texas, which is now the most power-demanding state in the U.S. already is at over 20% sustainable energy sources.

Natural Gas and Wind are on the Rise

The plan is to continue to deploy more natural gas and wind power plants while reducing the investment in coal and nuclear. Investment levels continue to surge and are bringing the plants with them. That is causing concern in executive circles among the nation's largest energy producers.

Wind and natural gas are leading the way in Texas, and a few recent incidents point out a few flaws. Dallas residents have seen prices spike due to warm and cold weather, and few were expecting such a massive increase.

Consumers know that the electric grid is always producing energy, and they should be able to get what they need from a supplier. What many don't know is how the network operates. Coal and nuclear plants store excess power so that they can meet demands for spikes quickly from their supplies.

Interruptions of Service are Concerning

Alternative sustainable production methods don't have the same safeguards. When demand spikes, the vendor may need to increase prices to produce more or to purchase from a backup source. When that happens, consumers receive significant bills and have to reevaluate their service.

Natural gas, wind, and solar energy all suffer from one common drawback. These plants are intermittent sources of electricity production that have a single point of failure. The older ones that are on the way out, coal and nuclear, do not share that characteristic. That's why they were a reliable choice for so long.

The Transformation is Underway

Energy pundits see the need to transform production — however, the lofty targets set by various governments may not happen in the expected optimistic timeframe. The country is attempting to switch from fossil fuels as the primary source of fuel and energy to other methods, and it will be a challenge.

Douglas Healy agrees with other industry insiders who caution that the rush to 100% renewable energy is causing concern. Yes, it makes sense to move on this path, but there's no reason to go too quickly and put unnecessary strain on the system. America has a lot of demand for electricity, and it's not slowing down. The plan must also consider the growth needs.

Growth is happening across the nation, and some strains are showing. Whether these issues will cause a shift in policy is not known yet, but many experts are monitoring the situation. The global power grid will undergo a radical transformation that's similar to what's happening in the United States, so seeing how the problems pan out is interesting as a test case. Sustainable power generation will help the environment and will eventually result in cost savings. However, it will take some pain from change in the meantime.