Invest in the Future:
Build Power Plants to Meet Demand

Energy-efficiency programs are making a difference by helping to defray the need for a significant amount of new electric generating capacity. Despite efficiency gains, the reality is that electric companies must invest in new baseload power plants—those that run continuously—to meet growing electricity demands.   

The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that 240 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity will be needed by 2030. If all of this new capacity is built, costs likely would exceed $400 billion.

The development and use of more advanced, innovative technologies and clean, efficient power plants will enable electric companies to continue to use a diverse fuel supply to meet our nation's increasing demands for electricity while generating fewer emissions. 

In addition to power plant investment costs, electric companies also face growing environmental compliance costs. From 2002-2005, the electric power industry as a whole spent at least $21 billion on compliance with federal environmental laws; state and local rules drive that total even higher.² Two recent air quality regulations will cost the electric power industry nearly $50 billion in compliance costs between the years 2007 to 2025.³ In addition, the research, design, development, and deployment of new technoligies needed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will require additional investments.

¹U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Annual Energy Outlook 2007, February 2007.
²U.S. Department of Energy, EIA Form EIA-767 (2002-2005). Data analyzed by Edison Electric Institute and Global Energy Intelligence.
³U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air and Radiation, October 2005. One rule, the Clean Air Mercury rule, is currently being resolved in the courts; complaince costs could rise under alternative regulatory regimes.

FutureGen illustration provided courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy.