cooperating for community renewable energy
TRANSCRIPT
Cooperating for Community
Renewable Energy
A presentation to the South Dakota Resources Coalition
John Farrell
October 31, 2009
@ Inst. For Local Self-Reliance
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Thesis
By creating decentralized, community-
based renewable energy projects, tapping
into the existing grid, and applying new
smart grid technology, South Dakotans can
maximize the economic returns of energy
production.
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
The Opportunity !
! Percent of power from coal: 47%
! Number of SD coal mines: 0
! Percent of coal power owned locally: 5%
! Possible percent of power from wind: > 1000%
! Possible percent of wind power owned locally:
~100%
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Getting There !
! Smarter grid
! Scale and ownership
! Smarter policy and strategy
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart grids
! $9.6 million for South
Dakota
! Will provide grid
interactivity and
information
! Empower the
consumer
! More than a meter…
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart grids
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart grids
! Bay Localize did a survey of rooftops in a section
of East Oakland, CA and determined that 70% of
the electrical power needs for that area could be
generated on the rooftops of the existing structures
in the area. My own sense is that if the new
technologies were available 100 years ago, we
would have had very few long distance
transmission lines and large power companies.
! Arthur Boone, Oakland
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smarter grid
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smarter grid
! Minnesota Distributed Generation Study
! High level engineering analysis done by
utilities
! 600 MW of dispersed wind (10 to 40 MW)
with little to no infrastructure upgrades
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smarter grid
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart about scaleMost wind power economies of scale are captured at 10 MW
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart about scale
! Price of transmission = $3 million per mile
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart about scale
! Distributed projects are
enabled by new technology
! They tie into existing
infrastructure
! They capture most economies of
scale
! They enable local ownership
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Absentee = lost opportunity
! I live out on the Buffalo Ridge...Ilook out my window and I seehundreds of wind turbines. Mostof those turbines are owned bythe foreign multinationals. Outof two counties in Minnesotawe export about $80 milliondollars a year to France,Florida, Italy, Portugal, Spain.
-Dan Juhl, community winddeveloper
$80 million
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Local Ownership = growth
! Two times the jobs
! Four to five times more economic impact
Locally ownedAbsentee owned
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
! Federal incentives inhibit local ownership
! Production Tax Credit is not accessible
! Tax bill of $100,000 a year
! Nonprofits, rural electric coop, city, or county need not apply
! Only income from rental or business partnership
! Rewards income instead of production
Smart policy
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart policy
! Collective investment rules
! Securities and Exchange Commission
exemptions
! State registration
! Audits
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart policy
! Reform the PTC
! Allow all income
! Make refundable
! Reward production
e.g. Stimulus grants
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart policy
! Property Assessed Clean Energy
! Municipal bonds & aggregate purchasing
! Opt-in
! No upfront money, long-term loans, fixed toproperty
! California, Colorado, New Mexico
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart policy
! Utility-based community energy
! Rural electric cooperative United Powercommunity solar farm
! 25-year lease for a solar panel
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy?
! Long-distance
centralized renewable
energy - “hot spots”
! Harness renewable
energy everywhere
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot strategy
Strong
geothermal
resource
Strong solar
resource
Strong wind
resource
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot strategy
Strong
geothermal
resource
Strong solar
resource
Strong wind
resource
Existing high voltage
transmission line
Proposed high voltage
transmission line (765kV)Transmission plan credit:American Electric Power
Federal
preemption of
alternatives
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot strategy: costly
Strong
geothermal
resource
Strong solar
resource
Strong wind
resource
Existing high voltage
transmission line
Proposed high voltage
transmission line (765kV)
$100 billion to 200 billion
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot strategy: unpopular
! Want this in your backyard?
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot strategy: unpopular
! In May 2009, 10 East Coast governors:
! Requiring our residents and businesses to paybillions of dollars for new transmission lines thatwould import electricity from the upperMidwest and Southwest into their region“could jeopardize our states’ efforts to developwind resources ... “ They added, “it is wellaccepted that local generation is more responsiveand effective in solving reliability issues than longdistance energy inputs.”
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Hot spot: caveat emptor
! A victory for interstate transmission may be
at the expense of broader public support for
renewable energy
=
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy
! Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and
Environmental Affairs, Ian Bowles:
! Lawmakers should resist calls to add an extensive
and costly new transmission system that would
carry electricity from…the Great Plains…to
places with high energy demands like Boston,
Chicago, and New York ... Renewable energy
resources are found all across the country; they
don’t need to be harnessed from just one place.
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy
! Smart grids
! Electric cars
! Distributed generation
! Local ownership
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy: Willmar, MN
! Willmar, MN
! Municipal utility
! Two wind turbines, cheaper than coal
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy: Morris, MN
! University of Minnesota
! Wind turbine(s)
! Biomass district heating
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Smart strategy: MMPA
! Minnesota Municipal Power Association
! 12 wind turbine, 12 cities
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Thesis
By creating decentralized, community-
based renewable energy projects, tapping
into the existing grid, and applying new
smart grid technology, South Dakotans can
maximize the economic returns of energy
production.
John Farrell, ILSR, [email protected]. 31, 2009: SDRC
Thank you!
! John Farrell
! New Rules Project -
www.newrules.org