Recently the NC Senate passed its version of the Energy Renewable Bill on to the NC House for its review.  The bill establishes a mandate for utilities to generate renewable energy and to save energy through energy efficiency improvements.  Although the House could institute changes, the bill currently mandates that each electric utility (cooperative, investor owned utility, and municipal power supplier) must purchase or generate ten percent of its total sales from renewable energy resources or reduce electricity use through energy efficiency improvements.  These requirements are to be met over the next 10 years, and can be achieved in a variety of ways such as adding renewable generation, wholesale power contract agreements, and energy efficiency programs.

The goal of this bill is clear:  to promote renewable energy and to protect the environment.

Fortunately, French Broad EMC has been actively promoting these goals for years and continues to look for cost efficient ways to meet our energy needs.  Whether it is operating its own hydroelectric facilities, being a member of NC GreenPower, or purchasing all the renewable energy the law will allow from the Southeastern Power Administration (SEPA), your board of directors has made it a priority to use renewable energy to supply our membership with electricity.  French Broad EMC has also worked with individual members to connect their renewable energy projects to our electrical grid and to discuss how to make their houses more energy efficient. These efforts have already placed FBEMC well ahead of the curve. 

While the objectives of this bill should be commended, a better understanding of renewable energy and its place in electricity generation is necessary for these goals to be met in a cost effective way. 

Electricity, unlike other energy resources, cannot be stored and shipped to where it is needed, so generation facilities must run concurrently for long periods of time.  Often these plants are referred to as base load plants and typically use nuclear or coal for their primary fuel source.  Additional plants are brought on line on the really cold or hot days to provide the additional electricity needed for heating and cooling.  These plants are commonly called peaking plants and are fueled by natural gas or diesel.  Despite having much higher fuel costs to operate than base load plants, these peaking plants are advantageous due to their low installation costs, reliability, and their quick start time.  These plants typically only run a few hours per month to provide the peak amount of electricity exactly when it is needed. 

Renewable energy facilities have great difficulty being a substitute for either of these types of power plants.  Since the sun does not always shine, the wind is not always blowing, or the water is not always flowing at the same rate, renewable energy facilities are not reliable enough to replace base load plants or peaking plants.  In addition, the cost per kilowatt hour in today’s market is much higher for renewable facilities.  These facilities produce such small amounts of electricity that it takes a substantial number of these units to offset the amount of energy supplied by a single fossil fuel unit. 

For the foreseeable future, renewable energy generation’s place in the energy production market is one in which it can reduce the amount of fossil fuels burned by supplying supplemental energy rather than replacing an existing or future base load or peaking plant.

Thank You,
Jeff Loven
Email: jeff.loven@frenchbroademc.com


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