Coal company gets its lumps for Christmas early

Dan Gainor of the Business & Media Institute critiqued a story in Tuesday’s New York Times about coal company TXU Corp.’s plans to build new power plants in Texas. Gainor argued that the story was biased against coal companies and didn’t give the company much of a chance to respond.

Gainor wrote, “The entire piece beat up the company for not meeting regulations that don’t even exist. As [reporter Matthew] Wald explained it, ‘for the most part TXU is choosing the technology that will produce the cheapest power consistent with existing environmental regulations.’ But instead of treating that as normal business practice, not to mention good for consumers, the reporter held TXU to the standards of left-wing climate change activists who would like to see strict carbon regulations. ”

The Times piece criticized Texas as well, because it ‘has no goals for cutting carbon emissions.’ Even Republican Texas Gov. Rick Perry was treated as a lackey for the industry. ‘Rick Perry, who has received campaign support from companies that burn or ship coal, has fast-tracked coal permit applications from TXU and other companies,’ Wald charged, though Perry’s office denied it.

“Despite the article’s spin, a former Clinton administration undersecretary of energy agreed that ‘coal is now the most attractive fuel’ and that ‘the traditional coal-burning plant may be the best way to make electricity.’ In other words, exactly what TXU was doing.”

Read more here.