Top Lawmakers Open the Door to Building a Gas-burning Power Plant in Maryland, Risking Uncertainty for Ratepayers and Possibly Relying on Unproven Carbon Capture Technology
Studies show Maryland could manage rising electricity demand at a lower cost by turning to efficiency and utility-scale batteries like Texas and California. Meanwhile, carbon capture plants will still use fracked gas, leak methane, and employ technology that has not been proven to work or save ratepayers money.
ANNAPOLIS – Top Maryland lawmakers today opened the door to possible construction of a large gas-fired power plant in the state despite the absence of publicly available modeling showing it would lower consumers’ energy bills or solve the state’s grid congestion problem in a timely manner. Further, lawmakers asserted that any new gas plant built in the state might later be retrofitted with carbon capture technology or run on green hydrogen, two technologies that have never been done at scale before and would likely be extraordinarily expensive.
The package of energy bills discussed by lawmakers at a press conference today would achieve multiple positive results, including cutting red tape for solar energy deployment, mandating state-led long-term energy planning, and incentivizing battery storage. These provisions are reasonable and productive. We look forward to seeing legislative language for these bills.
Clean energy advocates have proposed their own approach to solving energy congestion that would not include gas, instead combining more solar power, utility-scale batteries, and grid-wide efficiency gains to solve the state’s power congestion problem. This approach would be faster, come at a lower cost, and would protect public health and the climate, according to a statement today from the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) Action Fund.
At the very least, CCAN Action Fund stressed today, every lawmaker in Annapolis should be asking whether there is any modeling and independent data showing that a gas plant – with or without carbon capture or hydrogen conversion – is necessary to meet our energy needs and why advanced battery storage and smart-grid technology, combined with growing solar power, CAN’T solve the problem at a cheaper cost. Rushing to vote on legislation that could construct a gas plant could lead to permanent regrets, steering money away from better climate solutions while putting consumers at risk of paying significantly more as we prepare for the state’s future energy needs.
Statement from CCAN Action Fund Executive Director Mike Tidwell:
“In an era of rapid global warming, most Maryland voters will be shocked to learn that lawmakers in Annapolis are considering legislation that could result in construction of a large gas-fired power plant in the state. Just as shocking is this fact: modeling shows gas is actually a more EXPENSIVE way to address the state’s rising use of electricity than deploying utility-scale batteries. Texas and California are demonstrating right now, today, that utility-scale battery storage, combined with renewable power, will keep the lights on and protect rate-payers.
“Meanwhile, carbon capture and storage for a gas plant has not been proven to work at scale, anywhere in the country, or save ratepayers money. This is experimental technology with significantly uncertain financial impacts on consumers. Such plants, using methane from fracking wells across the region, will still contribute to global warming as methane leaks from drilling operations, pipelines, and compressor stations before reaching the power plants. Then the captured CO2 from combustion must be transported by pipeline to a massive subterranean storage space that is permanent and failure free. This has not been proven to work anywhere in the United States in a cost-effective manner.
“Do Maryland lawmakers really want to vote for something so decidedly experimental and financially uncertain? Especially when alternatives are available? The projected grid congestion problem in Maryland is mostly spawned by mismanagement from our regional grid operator PJM. It’s time to reform PJM so that adequate planning – with wise policies for transmission, battery storage, and renewable power – can be achieved. Plus projected energy use from data centers, it turns out, may have been significantly overblown after new AI technology from China was released last month.
“A better and faster policy to protect grid stability in Maryland is to pass Delegate Lorig Charkoudian’s Abundant and Affordable Clean Energy Act. It smartly addresses grid congestion by investing in battery storage, solar power, and the safe maintenance of current nuclear generation in the state, among other features.
“CCAN Action Fund also applauds proposed legislation to help improve deployment of solar power across Maryland from Senator Brian Feldman and Delegate CT Wilson.
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Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN) Action Fund is dedicated to driving change in public policies at the local, state, and national levels to address the climate crisis. Through voter education, lobbying, and participation in the electoral process, we seek to advance our country’s leadership in the global movement toward clean energy solutions — focusing our efforts primarily in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC. We know that a vibrant democracy is central to our success so we work to defend democratic integrity wherever we can.
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