(The following article by Marija B. Vader was posted on the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel website on July 7.)
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Coal train derailments in Wyoming in May might mean higher energy bills later this year for Colorado residents.
As a result of two derailments, the main rail lines leading from the coal-rich Powder River Basin in northern Wyoming will be rebuilt, according to the Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Web sites.
Construction to rebuild the lines is expected to run until at least November.
During construction, delivery of coal to Xcel Energy power plants is expected to be interrupted, said Tom Henley, spokesman for Xcel Energy.
Xcel officials expect to retrofit their coal plants to use natural gas for power generation at the three Colorado power plants now served by Powder River Basin coal, Henley said.
While power won’t be interrupted, it may cost more to generate, he said.
“We’re reducing the amount of coal we burn. Burning with natural gas is more costly,” Henley said. “It could cost customers more money.”
Henley did not know how much the rail construction might affect the price of power.
“We probably won’t know until we see the effects of the events on a monthly basis,” Henley said. “There are too many variables to say what it’s going to end up costing.”
The railroad companies attributed the derailments to damage done to the rails because of extensive rain and snow that fell in March and April.
The Union Pacific Web site said the company will allocate coal proportionately among the customers.
“We strongly encourage each of you to take steps to conserve coal,” the company said in an e-mail to customers.
The line is “the busiest and highest density freight railroad in the world,” the message said, adding the improvements to the line will create “significant volume increases.”
The Powder River Basin supplies one-third of the coal in the nation for coal-fired power, Henley said.