Proving the Case for Reconversion of Coal Plants in the United States

Coal-fired power plants are major contributors to CO2 emissions, necessitating a shift towards cleaner energy sources to combat climate change. The options include transforming existing coal plants into cleaner energy sources/repurposing them for other productive assets. Whereas many regard the reconversion of coal plants as merely an environmental imperative, there is also an opportunity for socio-economic development in such projects. The transformations of coal-fired power plants can generate extensive benefits, including job creation, increased tax revenues, competitive electricity prices, and enhanced profitability for electric utilities and other stakeholders.

Roland Berger partnered with Columbia University’s SIPA Capstone team to create a qualitative and quantitative assessment of this critical matter. This partnership aimed to develop a robust quantitative model to project the costs and benefits of coal plant reconversions. The project's scope encompassed evaluating the viability of reconversion options through the impact on electricity grid stability, employment availability and suitability, tax revenues, emissions, and electricity rates. Utilizing an operating coal plant in West Virginia as a primary use case, the partnership developed a model to prove a case for reconversion. This project results in 1) Solar + Battery, 2) Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) + Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS), and 3) CCGT + CCS + Industrial Hub as the three possible redevelopment pathways for a sample coal plant. This conclusion was made after considering all the parameters, including the suspected reduced employment and tax revenue. This project also argued that a similar approach can be replicated in other coal plants across the U.S.