Wyoming’s Carbon Valley aims to turn ‘coal into gold’

Wyoming's Powder River Basin, traditionally a coal-dominant region, is striving to transform into "Carbon Valley," leveraging its coal resources for high-tech applications such as graphene, aircraft fuselages, and water filters. As thermal coal faces a steep decline due to a shift towards natural gas, wind, and solar energy, local officials, like Campbell County Commissioner Mark Christensen, advocate for new economic engines that repurpose existing coal resources. This initiative is driven by the urgent need to mitigate the economic downturn caused by the fall in coal demand, which has drastically reduced annual coal output and severance tax revenues, pushing the state to tap into its rainy-day fund.

Despite efforts to innovate and diversify, Wyoming faces significant challenges. Projects such as Atlas Carbon and the Advanced Carbon Products Innovation Center aim to add value to coal, yet they operate on a small scale compared to the massive coal mining operations. Meanwhile, broader adoption of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies remains hindered by the lack of climate regulations that would make such investments viable. The political climate in Wyoming, resistant to carbon taxes and skeptical of CO2's role in global warming, further complicates these efforts. While officials like Governor Mark Gordon and Jason Begger of the Wyoming Infrastructure Authority push for technological solutions, success hinges on significant government support and a shift in both local and national energy policies.

Read the full article from the Financial Times here: Wyoming’s Carbon Valley aims to turn ‘coal into gold’ (ft.com)