By Thomas Phippen Holy Cross Energy in September committed to an ambitious plan to reduce 70 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Now, just last week, Xcel Energy announced that it would reduce emissions by 80 percent (from 2005 levels) by 2030, and rely solely on renewable energy by 2050.
Xcel moving to higher renewable mix in its energy production will make it easier for Holy Cross, a Glenwood Springs-based regional electric cooperative, to reach its own goals.
“We stand on their shoulders. If they’re shoulders get higher, we can get higher ourselves,” said Bryan Hannegan, president and CEO of Holy Cross Energy.
Holy Cross went further than Xcel to promise increased renewable energy “in a way that wasn’t unduly costly to the consumer,” Hannegan said.
Local sustainable energy advocacy group Clean Energy Economy for the Region (CLEER) will cohost a roundtable Thursday to discuss the recent commitments and what it could mean for the Valley. Elected officials from Garfield, Pitkin and Eagle counties, as well as representatives from Xcel and Holy Cross, will participate in the discussions.
Part of the energy story in Garfield County is the increase in natural gas production over past years, thanks to horizontal hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. Natural gas has been a critical part of the utility industry’s reduction in coal energy over the past several years as an inexpensive and lower emission alternative to coal.
Even with the current focus on renewables, oil and gas trade association West Slope Colorado Oil and Gas Association executive director Eric Carlson isn’t concerned about the push toward more renewables will harm the industry anytime soon.
“Renewables will require these major technologies that aren’t proven yet,” Carlson said. “We know today that we have the ability for reliability from natural gas. From the consumer perspective, that is the top priority.”
Erica Sparhawk, deputy director of CLEER, said the energy commitments and the Thursday roundtable are a chance for the region to be known as a renewable energy leader, as well as a natural gas producer.
Reliance on renewables will require a number of technologies that don’t yet exist, particularly in battery storage for solar. A lot of energy uses happen when the sun isn’t shining. People need lights, heat, and, at least in this region, to turn on snowmaking machines, at night, leading to peak periods that require the energy grid to spike power production.
The main factors driving the recent commitments are historically low costs for wind and solar, improvements in technology, and a change in how consumers think about energy, according to industry observers. There is also a risk that federal tax incentives for wind and solar, which helped make technology development possible, will not be renewed after they expire between 2020 and 2022.
In years past, a utility company would likely avoid telling consumers how to use power differently, but many people now seek to use energy in a way that isn’t harmful to the environment, Hannegan said.
Of course, people still want their showers hot …read more
Via:: Post Independent