With shale gas technology continues to progress, the U.S. natural gas production is increasing.

In the past 10 years, natural gas and power industries become increasingly interdependent. From 2001 to 2011, Frac sand total U.S. gas-fired generating capacity ratio jumped from 17.1% to 24.7% over the same period the power sector demand for natural gas from 150 billion cubic meters to 215.3 billion cubic meters. International Energy Agency (IEA) 2012 interim report shows that the market for natural gas, to the 2017 U.S. natural gas demand will increase by 90 billion cubic meters, of which 3/4 will come from the power sector.

2011 American Gas generation capacity is also the first time in history more than 1000TWh (TWh: TWh), reaching 1014TWh, an increase over the previous year 29TWh. In March 2012 accounted for more than gas-fired power generation has reached 35%, is expected in 2012 year this figure will reach 30% of the average.

With gas-fired generation compared to those in the United States the proportion of coal-fired generation continues to decline.Proppant If you start from shale gas production increased significantly in 2006 calculations, by 2011 the U.S. gas-fired generation increased by 200TWh, while coal decreased 256TWh. Meanwhile, the U.S. coal demand in 2012 is expected to be down 5% to 884 million tons, which is the lowest since 1995 level.

As the United States imposed the more stringent greenhouse gas management, the development of coal-fired generation in the United States has suffered more from the prospect of policy challenges. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced in December 2011 mercury and air pollutants standards, a number of coal-fired power plants can not meet the requirements will have to be decommissioned. In the March 27, 2012, the U.S. government issued its first-ever limit new power plant greenhouse gas emissions regulations. Gas-fired power plants to meet acceptable standards of greenhouse gas emissions, but you need to add more coal-fired power plant carbon capture device to pass approval.

Now, the U.S. eastern grid (Eastern Interconnect) there are more than 100 coal-fired power plant decommissioning plan announced, some power plants will be completed in the next two years retired, more plant decommissioning was placed in 2014 ~ 2015. Of which 80% are in service in more than 40 years, the installed capacity of 400 megawatts of coal-fired power plants.

More coal-fired plant decommissioning,frac sand companies compared to gas-fired power generation - especially the new combined cycle gas turbine power plant (CCGT) power market in the United States provide a new growth. Equipped with new gas-fired CCGT power plants than coal-fired power plant construction costs lower, the construction period is also shorter. Under the same conditions, building a CCGT plant was two years, and construction of a coal-fired power plants of the time you will need four years. And because the carbon dioxide emissions from the combustion of natural gas from coal combustion is less than 50% by gas-fired plants replace coal-fired plants are the lowest cost of reducing carbon emissions, but also the most rapid method.

According to the International Gas Union (IGU) estimates, if the 2035 retired coal-fired power plants are replaced by gas-fired power plants, global carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by 21%.

However, the gas-fired power generation on alternative will not be completed overnight. In the next period of time, coal is still the main source of U.S. electricity supply. In 2011, despite the coal-fired generating capacity is already below the level of the previous 2000TWh only 1734TWh, but still higher than 70% of natural gas generating capacity.

Here for many reasons, the geographical distribution of resources is one of them: in some places the cost of coal-fired generation is much less than the cost of gas-fired generation, such as in Wyoming Powder River Basin coal district (Powder River Basin), its 2011 coal price is $ 0.75 / mmbtu, while the local gas price is $ 5.5 / mmbtu. Meanwhile, the distribution of natural gas pipeline network, different skill levels of plant efficiency differences between coal producers and power plant contracts and other factors also limit the rapid expansion of gas-fired generation.