Ken W2KB wrote:ReadingAve wrote:Anyone else notice the unusual trains of empty coal cars passing through Barrington yesterday and Monday around 5:30pm? Yesterday, the consist was pulled by (5) locomotives. I don't see that too often on those tracks. I wonder if the power plant is going back on-line??
That would be consistent with the upcoming peak demand season. I believe that the B. L. England Generating Station remains in PJM Interconnection capacity planning model for the next several years. I don't know how often the station is dispatched. That said, given the very low cost of natural gas, oil and coal units run far fewer hours than they used so. So there may not be need for as many coal deliveries for considerable amount of time.
I've read that they normally keep a 90 day supply of coal on hand. Given the very mild winter, there were probably only a handful of times that the plant would have been brought online in the last several months which means that they still have a good stockpile. That being said, if the empties are being pulled (from presumably FREE storage), they just might be making some room down there for a couple inbounds to stock up for the summer. Keep your ears open for a CSX V-779 or a NS 502 in the future.