As the U.S. EPA has announced its reversal of the Clean Power Plan (CPP) and the federal commitment to non-carbon based energy appears to be at a turning point, many states are moving forward with their plans to invest in additional clean energy capacity.
A recent example is Colorado, where the largest utility, Xcel Energy, led a coalition of 14 entities – including the Colorado Energy Office, the city of Boulder, and several industry associations – to propose a new energy plan to the state’s public utility commission.
The document that the company calls the Colorado Energy Plan lays out a vision for generating 2,400 MW of new power, including 1,000 MW of wind, 700 MW of solar and 700 MW of natural gas. The plan represents a $2.5 billion investment, the company said.
The plan also calls for the early retirement of two coal units.
Xcel’s president for North America told the Denver Post that the plan fulfills half the 26% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions called for by a July executive order from Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper.
In the end, though, the winning argument for the expansion in renewable energy sources is economic, not political, Eves told the newspaper.
“It is really about the economics,” he said. “From the company’s perspective, this plan is a response to our customers”
The Colorado plan appears consistent with that of Minnesota, where the state’s lieutenant governor announced a bipartisan plan earlier this year that would increase the target for renewable energy to 50% of the state’s power by 2030.
Minnesota’s previous goal, established in 2007, was 25% by 2025. Today, renewable energy accounts for 21% of the state’s electricity, the governor’s office said.
Minnesota’s announcement also cited the benefits to the state’s economy, noting that clean energy jobs in the state grew 78% between 2000 and 2014, while the state’s total employment growth during that period was 11%.
The interest in these states in moving forward may be no coincidence, as Xcel is the largest power generator in both states.
In March, Xcel announced its own plan for new investment in wind energy that would add 3,380 megawatts of new wind generation and increase the percentage of wind energy in the company’s mix to 35% by 2021. The plan included the development of 11 new wind farms in seven states. And last month, the company announced plans for a new wind farm in South Dakota that would bring that commitment to 3,680 megawatts, making it the first U.S. utility to generate 10,000 megawatts of wind.
As the news regarding the EPA’s action on the CPP takes hold (along with the inevitable opposition and court battles), it will be interesting to see if other states stay the course and continue seeking reductions in carbon-based electricity production.
