...uncertain about if and when electricity demand growth will return to normal, few are willing commit to a multibillion-dollar coal projects.

However, while he believes that coal-plant development will “pause” for a year or two, Oskvig emphasizes that more coal plants will be built in the coming decade. Coal-fired generation “has its place” in the power industry’s fuel mix if only because the U.S. has abundant coal resources, and the nation will continue to need large amounts of baseload power, he says.

Shaky

In the gas-fired side of the power industry, the sluggish economy is hampering projects. Gas-fired combined-cycle projects are looking better as an alternative to coal than a year ago because gas prices are low and North American reserves, once seen as declining, are now believed to be much larger. But schedules for several gas-fired projects have been delayed recently after utilities experienced big drops in electricity demand from industrial and other customers.

Moreover, sources say utilities concerned about the ongoing credit crunch have been trying to reduce their capital spending plans, and many independent power companies have faced real difficulty in securing project financing.

A fortunate few contractors are working on major combined-cycle projects. For example, B&V is building three 1,100-MW plants for Florida Power & Light in Palm Beach County, Fla.; BE&K, the Birmingham, Ala.-based subsidiary of Houston-based KBR, is building a 600-MW plant for Progress Energy Carolinas in Richmond County, N.C.; and The Shaw Group, Baton Rouge, is building a 500-MW plant for Astoria Energy in New York City.

Shaw is poised to design and build several Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear units, including two 1,117-MW units for Georgia Power and its partners at the Vogtle station in Waynesboro, Ga., which currently has two 1,215-MW units. It will do the same for two 1,117-MW units for a joint venture of South Carolina Electric & Gas and Santee Cooper at their 900-Mw Summer station in Jenkinsville, S.C.

The Vogtle and Summer projects are among the finalists for federal loan guarantees, but they and other nuclear projects continue to face opposition from critics who say they will end up costing far more than their developers suggest, and the issue of long-term storage of nuclear waste remains unresolved.

Prospects in the renewable market also have dimmed. The federal stimulus package offers support for renewables, but the rules governing the incentives are complicated and the competition for them can be fierce. Also, it remains unclear exactly what Congress will agree to regarding the timing and aggressiveness of a federal renewable portfolio standard.

Lauren E&C’s Moore and other construction executives say they sense a lull in renewables...