Competition from record-low natural gas prices and reduced power demand in the lockdown in the spring sent coal consumption in the U.S. power sector down by 30 percent in the first half of 2020 compared to the same period last year, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Friday. The spot price of the U.S. natural gas benchmark Henry Hub hit record lows in the first half of 2020 due to mild winter early in the year and depressed demand later on with the pandemic. Monthly prices reached as low as $1.63 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in June, the lowest monthly inflation-adjusted price since at least 1989, according to EIA estimates. Other factors contributing to the lower coal consumption this year included the continuously falling coal-fired electricity generation capacity in the United States as natural gas has been replacing coal capacity because of the cheap and […]