Keep in mind that the thermodynamic efficiencies of the best diesel engines are around 50% and the best simple cycle gas turbines are about 46%. Simple steam plants max out around 40%. The latest combined cycle plants are capable of 60% thermal efficiency. Transmission and distribution losses are likely to be less than 30, so the electric would end up having a slight advantage over the diesel assuming that the central plant was burning fuel oil.
In the last three years in the US, the cost of natural gas has been substantially less than petroleum based fuels and it is MUCH easier converting a gas turbine plant (either simple or combined cycle) to run on natural gas than it is a diesel locomotive.
- Erik
And I WAS NOT stating that cost of energy to the railroad was necessaily chaper from the electric company than from the diesel fuel supplier. I was really toucning only costs of generation or generation and transmission. Since the rediculous Justice Department decision that power companies cannot own transportation companies, maybe large railroads should buld there own power plants and sell residual energy to the power companies?
Good point on the cost of electrical energy at the traction motor... My point is that the cost of a given unit of energy from natural gas will likely be substantially less than fuel oil for some time. In addition, electrification can rely on many other sources of primary energy such as coal, hydro, nuclear, and the various alternative sources/
It might make sense for the large railroads to invest in generation as part of electrification and contract with the owners of the transmission and distribution lines for wheeling the power to the traction substations. They might have legal issues if the plant is coal fired and the railroad in question is doing the hauling.
The prohibition of transportation company ownership by power companies came from the witch hunt following the break-down of the Insull utility conglomerate. One account stated that Sam Insull had done a good job of reducing the debt load of his companies. The problem was that Insull's brother was enamored with leverage and the brother proceeded to load up the debt in the 1930 time frame (which is the one reason that I thought the "The Children's Fund" plan for CSX was a disaster in the making).
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