CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. A helicopter hovers over the Gee family farm, the noisy rattle echoing inside their home in this rural part of West Virginia. It s holding surveyors who are eyeing space for yet another power line next to the property a line that will take electricity generated from coal plants in the state to address a drain on power driven by the world s internet hub in Northern Virginia 35 miles away.
Virginia data centers that process nearly 70% of global digital traffic need more electricity. Coal-fired power plants in neighboring states will provide it.
FirstEnergy has cited West Virginia energy policy as a key obstacle causing it to abandon its greenhouse gas reduction target for 2030. The utility says its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 30% by 2030 from a 2019 baseline depended on a “meaningful reduction in operation” at its Harrison and Fort Martin power stations that hasn t materialized.
The announcement by the Biden administration of a $7 billion investment in the development and distribution of hydrogen as a major alternative energy source in this country has the potential
A state of West Virginia-led coalition has garnered federal support for a hydrogen production-based hub of energy and economic development touted by West Virginia political and industrial leaders and eyed