China to surpass U.S. in CO2 utility emissions

subscribe

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by Chinese power plants are expected to surpass U.S. utilities' emissions of the main greenhouse gas by 2017, according to the Center for Global Development.

U.S. utilities spew out some 2.8 billion tons of CO2 annually while Chinese power plants are emitting 2.7 billion tons a year, according to the CGD study. The survey ranked individual power plants in different countries according to their CO2 emissions.

"Globally, power generation emits nearly 10 billion tons of CO2 per year. The U.S. with over 8,000 power plants out of more than 50,000 worldwide, accounts for about 25% of that total," the survey found.

The report claimed that the biggest U.S. CO2 emitter is Southern Co. whose power plants belch out 172 million tons of the principal greenhouse gas annually, followed by American Electric Power Company Inc., Duke Energy Corp., and AES Corp. The state with the biggest CO2 emissions from electricity generation is Texas which accounts for 290 million tons of emissions, followed by Florida (157 million tons) and Indiana (137 million tons).

China's largest emitter is Huaneng Power International that accounts for 292 million tons of CO2 emissions.

Researchers said U.S. emissions were high partly due to high living standards, but also differences in energy policy.

"Europeans, with comparable living standards, emit less than half the power sector CO2 of the average American," said CGD president Nancy Birdsall.

Related News

riverbend nuclear power plant

NRC Begins Special Inspection at River Bend Nuclear Power Plant

WASHINGTON - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun a special inspection at the River Bend nuclear power plant to review circumstances related to the failure of five portable emergency diesel generators during testing. The plant, operated by Entergy Operations, is located in St. Francisville, La.

The generators are used to supply power to plant systems in the event of a prolonged loss of off-site electrical power coupled with a failure of the permanently installed emergency generators. These portable generators were acquired as part of the facility's safety enhancements mandated by the NRC following the 2011 accident at the Fukushima Dai-ichi facility…

READ MORE
New York Governor Kathy Hochul

Building begins on facility linking Canada hydropower to NYC

READ MORE

Hydro meters

Metering Pilot projects may be good example for Ontario utilities

READ MORE

Energy Vault Lands $110M From SoftBank’s Vision Fund for Gravity Storage

READ MORE

tidal power

Canada Makes Historic Investments in Tidal Energy in Nova Scotia

READ MORE