Washington (Platts) -- 29June2001
Fewer than half of the power plants now in development throughout the US are likely to be completed due to the slow growth in gas supplies, according to an analysis released Friday. The Williams Capital Group, a New York-based investment bank, said while 300,000 MW of new generating capacity set to come on-line by 2005 is currently in development, little more than 100,000 MW of that will be completed over the next three years. According to the report, the gap is the result of "infrastructure constraints, including US energy policy, public attitudes toward new facilities and anemic growth of natural gas supplies, the fuel to be used in over 90% of the proposed plants." The report predicted that by 2010 330,000 MW would have to be built in order to keep up with the "likely" 3% annual power demand growth. The analysis said "as a consequence of insufficient gas supplies," generators would have to build 200,000 MW of coal- or nuclear-fueled capacity to meet long-term demand. |
