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US President Donald Trump has been furiously pumping up coal, but reality keeps bursting his bubble. Exhibit A is the massive Sherco coal power plant in Minnesota. Once a massive gigantic monument to 20th century energy technology, the site is now home to the Sherco Energy Hub, where three existing coal units are succumbing to the inevitable march of 21st century solar power, energy storage, and transmission systems.
Coal Power Vs. Solar Power: Reality Bites
The Sherburne County (Sherco for short) power plant was initially constructed in the 1970’s with two units. A third unit came online the 1980’s at a cost of approximately $1 billion, making Sherco the biggest power plant in Minnesota at 2.2 gigawatts.
Despite its billion-dollar price tag, though, Unit 3 experienced a catastrophic failure in 2011, forcing it offline. Unit 3 finally returned to service in 2013 at an additional cost of $200 million.
