Natural gas is riding high at the moment. Cheap costs mixed with the rising prices in oil and coal have sent its popularity soaring.
A boom in the number of natural gas combined-cycle (NGCC) turbines doubled its generation. As the number of coal plants being shut down continues to grow, natural gas is finally gaining valuable ground on its dirty rival.
Why is Natural Gas So Good?
Although not 100% clean like renewable energy, it's significantly cleaner than coal and oil production. Most notably carbon dioxide and sulpher dioxide emissions are much lower – with coal producing 2,590 more sulpher dioxides and 91,000 more carbon dioxide emissions than natural gas.
Natural gas is also filling the void left by hydrogen and electric cars. The cleaner fuel and abundant supply, thanks to advances in fracking, mean natural gas now stands as the only viable alternative to oil for transport energy.
Unlike oil and coal, there's no real ugly side to natural gas. As energy sources go, it's one of the good ones. It's seen as the safer and cleaner fossil fuel, compared to others such as oil and coal and many are hailing its uprising as the answer to many problems left by oil and coal.