Carbon dioxide costs a weighty matter

We all know what's happened to gas prices, but another kind of gas also could get more expensive – with huge implications for how South Carolinians generate and pay for electricity.

We're talking about carbon dioxide, or CO2, a colorless, odorless gas produced by volcanoes, geysers, animals and, of course, human activities, such as the burning of oil, coal and gas.

Federal regulations on carbon are likely to be enacted after this year's election. Both parties favor some sort of effort to reduce greenhouse gases, either through a tax on CO2 or a system that caps the amount of CO2 that can be released and allows emitters to buy and sell CO2 pollution credits.

A new analysis by Synapse Energy Economics, Inc., said that because of these trends, U.S. utilities (and their ratepayers) likely will begin paying $10 to $30 per ton of CO2 by 2013. Synapse is a consultant that provides research and regulatory support to state energy offices, consumer advocates and environmental groups.

These carbon dioxide costs are making new coal-fired power plants much more expensive, Synapse said.

For instance, Santee Cooper's proposed coal-fired power plant would generate as much as 9 million tons of CO2 a year.

In a separate report in February, Synapse said that the potential price tag of carbon dioxide and the increasing costs of building coal-fired power plants are reminiscent of the cost jumps that brought new construction of nuclear plants to a halt in the 1980s.

Reach Tony Bartelme at 937-5554 or tbartelme@postandcourier.com.