Domestic Energy

One of the benefits coal has over oil is that it can be produced domestically. According to EnergyLiteracy.org, 496 billion tons of coal can be found on U.S. soil, half of which can be obtained with the technology currently available. At current consumption rates, this works out to an estimated 250-year supply. Because coal-generated power can be produced domestically, it can reduce dependance on energy sources produced in potentially unstable regions of the world. This leads to fewer national security issues related to energy policy, according to EnergyLiteracy.

Cost of Production

Coal is also one of the cheapest forms of energy, mostly due to the fact that it can be obtained domestically. Because the technology to produce coal power is already well-established, there is no additional cost for implementation, unlike newer technologies, such as solar and wind power. The Energy Information Administration estimates that a coal plant built in 2015 and using current coal production technology will be able to provide power for about 5.31 cents per kilowatt, making it much cheaper than energy produced by oil, natural gas or even solar power.

Efficiency

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, new methods of converting coal to energy can make coal production more efficient and reduce the environmental harm associated with current methods. The process, known as gassification, breaks down coal into its chemical components rather than burning it. In traditional coal power plants, only one-third of the energy value of coal is actually converted into electricity, while a gassification plant can boost energy output to 50 percent or more, according to the DOE. The gassification process also produces hydrogen, which can be used as clean-burning fuel for cars or in energy-generating fuel cells, making overall fuel use efficiency for gassification plants around 70 to 80 percent.

Economic Benefits

Clean-coal technology can also create millions of new high-wage jobs across the country, according to a 2010 study by The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity. The study analyzed the employment and economic benefits of clean-coal plants in 30 states, including Wyoming, North Carolina, Louisiana and Ohio. In Wyoming, the construction of three new clean-coal plants is expected to create 78,000 jobs over the next 15 years; the seven new plants under construction in Louisiana would create 190,000 jobs over that same period. Because of the potential employment benefits surrounding clean coal, major labor organizations, such as the AFL-CIO and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), support the expansion of clean coal as a prominent energy source.