Slow Burn

Slow Burn

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The myth of flexible coal and the flextech that works instead
Coal power is not fundamentally a flexible technology. On the roof of Pleasants Power Station in West Virginia, I could almost hear the sun. It was so…
 • Lucy Shaw
Coal's second life: how to turn liabilities into infrastructure for the future
With 500 acres of land, a former grid connection of over 1.5 gigawatts, and proximity to local ports, Aberthaw is an infrastructure developer’s dream…
 • Lucy Shaw
Cheap solar and batteries still can’t match India’s $11b+ coal rents
Renewables will need to compete on upstream benefits like tax revenue, foreign exchange savings, and energy independence to push coal out of the system…
 • Lucy Shaw
Solar plus storage now rivals fossil fuels for delivering affordable dispatchable electricity
“If your mother was on life support, would you want coal or renewables supplying electricity to her hospital?” Historically, using renewable energy…
 • Lucy Shaw
The government must offer pride, not just employment, to former coal communities
Reform’s call to bring back coal mining initially seems absurd. British coal jobs peaked more than a century ago as mines were exhausted, machines…
 • Lucy Shaw
Energy quick wins: re-balancing Britain's energy investment to shorter term solutions
Labour has four years left to deliver on its ambition to “make Britain a clean energy superpower.” There is no time to waste. The Reform and…
 • Lucy Shaw
Is coal actually "cheap?"
People care about energy costs. When there is a conflict, the price of oil is on everyone's lips. When was the last time you heard the price of coal?
 • Lucy Shaw
Coal isn't dying: why in the age of cheap renewables are we using more than ever before?
Many of us assume coal is on its natural way out because every day, a news story trumpets the success of renewables.
 • Lucy Shaw
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