Faith in coal may not always be rewarded, though. In Poland, energy giant PGE has been investing heavily in old coal infrastructure, hoping to keep coal units burning for years to come. But this costs hundreds of millions of dollars at a time when the price of renewable energy, particularly wind and solar, is falling rapidly.Take biomass. Although the wood pellets release carbon when they burn, it is touted as ‘green’ because the trees cut down for them can be replaced over time, thus sequestering carbon again later. But not everyone agrees that this truly makes biomass carbon-neutral. Even page 33 of Drax’s annual report reveals that biomass belches out more CO2 per unit of electricity generated than coal does – a serious problem with the fuel.
