U.S. Sen. Harry Reid might get his way with Nevada's renewable energy industry.
In February, he called for the state Legislature to strip "loopholes" out of
Nevada's Renewable Portfolio Standard, which mandates that 25 percent of
Nevada's energy will come from renewable sources by 2025.
Legislators are now pushing a bill that would remove the "loopholes," which are
provisions allowing energy companies such as NV Energy to meet the standard
through measures other than actual renewable energy production.
Senate Bill 252 passed the state Senate this year, and the Assembly plans to
hold a hearing on the measure at 1 p.m. today.
To the bill's supporters, it would mean more renewable energy generation in
Nevada, more jobs in Nevada and more of the precious economic diversification
elected officials love to talk about in speeches.
Great. Get that bill to the governor's desk right away, they say.
But, hey, wait just a second, say the bill's opponents. Renewable energy is a
relatively more expensive energy source, and making the utility build or buy
more of it will raise rates, said Dan Jacobsen with Nevada's Bureau of Consumer
Affairs.
To further confuse matters, dueling studies were released last month.
The bill's cheerleaders released a study saying changes in the Renewable
Portfolio Standard would create jobs and help the state's economy. The same
month, the bill's detractors released a study saying the renewable energy
standard kills jobs and hurts the state's economy.
The proposal would create construction jobs but also could force job losses due
to higher energy costs. So both studies are right, in a sense.
"What we really tried to do was talk about the good, the bad and the ugly," said
Lydia Ball, executive director of the Clean Energy Project, which commissioned
the study showing job creation and economic benefit. "What we found was that
there is still an overall benefit to this state."
The criticism of the plan comes from the Nevada Policy Research Institute, a
free-market think tank. The timing of the release of the group's study coincides
with a broader national push among conservative groups to roll back or repeal
renewable energy mandates similar to Nevada's Renewable Portfolio Standard.
But in Nevada, elected officials of both parties support measures to enhance the
state's renewable energy industry.
Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval has said he has a goal of making Nevada an
"epicenter of renewable energy," and Senate Bill 252 passed the Senate on a
unanimous vote.
"Closing these loopholes will strengthen the law and send a powerful signal that
Nevada remains committed to kicking our dependence on out-of-state fossil
fuels," Reid told legislators in a speech in February.
He said the utility should not get credit for buying hydroelectric power from
Utah or "allow them to meet the portfolio standard by handing out
energy-efficient light bulbs at Home Depot."
The utility also has banked credits over the years by sometimes exceeding the
portfolio standard. The bill would force the company to use those credits.
The bill would make NV Energy spend the credits it has carried over by exceeding
the standard during past years. It would also do away with a multiplier effect
that allows for the generating capacity of solar panels to count for 2.4 times
the actual generating capacity.
NV Energy would also no longer be able to count toward the mandate any renewable
energy it uses onsite to run its power plants.
Finally, the bill would ratchet down over time the amount of energy efficiency
measures that NV Energy can use to meet the renewable energy law.
All changes to the Renewable Portfolio Standard are aimed at spurring renewable
energy construction.
"The people who want to build renewables believe that if you take energy
efficiency out of the RPS, it would pave the way to build more renewables,"
Jacobsen said.
The utility is not opposed to the changes. NV Energy spokesman Rob Stillwell
said the utility supports the bill.
Others, however, are concerned about eliminating the energy efficiency mandates
that the Legislature added in 2005.
If they're removed, Nevada would lose the cheapest, most effective means to keep
power bills lower for customers, said Howard Geller, executive director of the
Southwest Energy Efficiency Project, a nonprofit organization promoting more
efficient energy use.
"We don't have a problem boosting investment in renewable technologies; we just
urge that Nevada set up energy efficiency standards alongside renewable energy
standards," he said.
Geller said the utility needs an incentive or mandate to promote energy
efficiency because it would otherwise be a financial disincentive for a utility
that makes money when customers buy more power.
Nevada is one of 24 states that have an energy efficiency mandate.
"The bottom line is the check we cut every month to our utility," Geller said.
"It's a product of rates times your consumption, and if you eliminate these
efficiency programs, you're not helping your customers reduce their
consumption."
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