Natural gas capacity higher than steam for the first time ever

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced this week that last year marked the first year on file during which capacity at natural gas combined-cycle plants was higher than that of coal steam plants on average.

The EIA said that there are several factors behind the phenomenon, including cost. In recent years, the cost of natural gas production has decreased as a result of improvements in technology. Because of this, natural gas production may be as effective as goal, or even more so. Last year, the average capacity factor of U.S. natural gas combined-cycle fleets was 56 percent, compared to a 55 percent average for coal steam plants.

The EIA hypothesized another factor that could have contributed to the shift regarding operational differences among facilities. Coal steam facilities must often run near full capacity to produce enough power, which sometimes requires facilities to be operational at night. Natural gas combined-cycle plants, however, can run at higher levels for shorter periods of time and produce enough power to be sufficient.

Coal steam plants also require more energy input per megawatt-hour than natural gas-fired combined-cycle plants, making natural gas plants more popular. Many coal plants have been retired, while natural gas combined-cycle facilities have risen from 35 percent in 2005 to approximately 56 percent last year on average.