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US coal power generation stayed on top of natural gas in June: EIA

US power generation from coal stayed ahead of natural gas in June, though the gap between the fossil fuels remains historically tight, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday.

Coal accounted for 34.9% of generation in June, or 126.3 TWh, while natural gas accounted for 33.3%, or 120.5 TWh, EIA said in its Electric Power Monthly report.

In May, coal made up 32.6% of generation, or 104.9 TWh, compared to 31.4%, or 92.5 TWh, for gas.

Natural gas in April took the top spot for the first time with 31.5% of generation, or 92.5 TWh, while coal made up 30.1%, or 88.8 TWh.

Through June, coal had accounted for 34.5% of US generation, down from 39.9% in the same period last year, while natural gas made up 30.3%, up from 25.2%.

The EIA said coal generation fell in June across most major regions of the US compared to the year-ago month.

The East North Central area, which includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, saw the largest year-on-year decrease as coal generation sank to 27.3 TWh from 31.4 TWh.

Indiana and Ohio accounted for the majority of the region's loss in coal generation from the year-ago month, dropping 21.7%, or 1.9 TWh, in Indiana and falling 21.1%, or 1.6 TWh, in Ohio.

source: http://www.platts.com