UCG Energy generation is lower cost and affected less by price volatility. 

Energy costs and fossil fuel prices in particular are likely to continue rising for the foreseeable future due to geo-political and demand pressures. Renewable energy sources are too expensive or unreliable at present to make a significant impact and nuclear energy still has an uncertain future. UCG provides a solution on a world scale because deep coal deposits are widely distributed and the technology is inexpensive. More importantly, it has a stable cost base.

Coal which can only be accessed by UCG has a zero or low cost and this is unlikely to change significantly in the short to medium term. Whereas the price of oil is currently around $100/barrel, coal royalties in the UK equate in energy terms to less than $50 cents per barrel. Moreover, coal deposits are generally well mapped so the costs associated with exploration and appraisal risk are minimal compared to oil and gas. Therefore, the economics of producing syngas are largely determined by the cost of drilling and well construction, which are more manageable than internationally traded commodities.

Compared to industrial natural gas prices in mid-2011 of € 8 -13 per GJ throughout most of Europe, syngas can be extracted and purified to sales specification for less than € 3 per GJ.