OREANDA-NEWS. April 27, 2015. We had two editors roaming the sessions, one to focus on coal and one to focus on electric power. Some of what we heard was shared from @PlattsPower, although @PlattsCoal, @PlattsGas and @PlattsOil also got some fodder from various officials sharing their plans. Just as a good power ballad has to come to an end, our coverage of this year’s CERAWeek is ending, and here are some thoughts from our editors about Thursday’s events.

Gregory Boyce, Peabody Energy’s outgoing CEO, spent his time in the spotlight Thursday denouncing US energy policies. He said new US standards that have cut into coal-fired power generation are raising electricity prices so much that many families are now struggling to pay their bills and more will be affected in the future.

Boyce, however, didn’t just complain from his soapbox as he called to keep electricity costs low and power reliable and available. He was a man with plan: a five-point policy toward a low-carbon future.

A key part to his plan is increasing investment in clean-coal technologies. He believes in the emissions controls already available to power plants, saying “I firmly believe that technology has solved every one of our major environmental problems.” He also touted carbon capture as a future technology needed for coal and natural gas, as energy policies will eventually call to cut emissions from both fossil fuels. — Jim Levesque

In the power sector, the name of the game is having enough power available when demand is at its highest.  When, however, the supply of power is not quite enough to meet the demand at its peak, there are only two possible solutions: add supply or reduce demand.  In the parlance of the industry, this is “shaving the peak.”

During power day one can hear the term “shave the peak” in speech after speech.

The beauty of CERAWeek is that the organizers invite representatives from countries all over the world. So on Thursday at CERAWeek one could hear “shave the peak” uttered in French, Spanish, Japanese and Australian accents. But no matter how you dressed it up, it was still always “shave the peak.”

So how do you shave the peak? Well, as the industry experts will quickly tell you in their host of languages, you use demand-response programs to get customers to shut off the electricity. This obviously cuts demand on the spot. Or you put solar panels on your roof. Your panels “shave the peak” by taking the pressure off the big nuke plant down the street.