Hybrid Power Technologies, LLC

Climate Change

In 2006, US CO2 emissions were about 5.8 trillion metric tons, distributed as shown below.

US CO2 Emissions - 2006
Commerical/residential	10%
Industrial	17%
Transportation	33%
Power	40%
Total ~ 5.8 trillion metric tons

* Source: US Energy Information Agency

Power sector emissions from coal plants accounted for 1.9 trillion tons, or about 33% of the US total. There are more than 500 utility coal power plants. The phase-out of older, inefficient coal plants (average age of US fleet is more than 30 years) with hybrid-nuclear coal units would significantly reduce CO2 emissions and pollutants such as mercury, nitrous oxides, sulfur dioxide and fine particulates.

The hybrid-nuclear technologies allow the US and world to continue to use coal, our most abundant fuel resource, and do so cleanly and at a reasonable cost .

Replacement of all coal plants with hybrid-nuclear/coal units could reduce total US greenhouse gas emissions by ~17% (to ~4.8 trillion tons or about 1990 levels). Concurrently upgrading older combined-cycle units to hybrid-nuclear plants could further decrease US CO2 emissions, achieving a nearly net 20% reduction. Realistically, however, large reductions in the transportation sector are vital if CO2 reduction targets are to be met.

Sequestering 50% of the CO2 emitted by the replacement hybrid-nuclear/coal units could cut total 2006 US CO2 emissions by ~25% (or to net ~4.4 trillion tons). While technically and economically readily accomplished by hybrid-nuclear units, the uncertainties of the sequestering process cast some doubt on the ultimate desirability of such an approach.

Legislative efforts are underway to impose some form of carbon tax or penalty on fossil power plants. Building upon the analyses thus far presents yields a forecast of the impact on the typical consumer. The hybrids are least affected.