Selected 2008 Activities and Accomplishments

The Interwest Energy Alliance was active in state legislatures, regulatory commissions and in other key venues through its six-state region of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming in 2008.

Acting on behalf of industry, working together with the West’s non-governmental advocacy community, Interwest achieved a number of its public policy and outreach goals in 2008. Some of our top accomplishments and activities are described below.

Rate recovery victory in Wyoming PSC

In a Wyoming PSC settlement agreement sought by Interwest, Rocky Mountain Power agreed to withdraw its New Renewable Resource Mechanism (NRRM), which would favor company-owned renewable projects versus those built by independent power providers.

Sponsorship of solar forum in Phoenix

In Phoenix, almost 300 people gathered at a successful Central Solar Power Forum conference in January 2008, cosponsored by the Interwest Energy Alliance.

Executive director honored by Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter

Interwest’s executive director, Craig Cox, was the individual recipient of Governor Ritter’s first annual “Excellence in Renewable Energy” award in 2008.

Interwest reaches transmission-planning settlement agreement with PSCo

In February 2008, Interwest negotiated an agreement with Xcel Energy and other parties providing for much more aggressive implementation of Colorado’s SB 100 transmission-expansion law. This settlement called for more frequent stakeholder meetings and more transmission CPCNs to be filed at an earlier date with the PUC.

Interwest kicks off comments on utility incentives

In March, the Interwest Energy Alliance was the first party to provide input to the Colorado PUC on utility incentives for greater adoption of renewable energy projects. As this issue became the focus of PUC dockets and workshops, Interwest has remained active in advancing its members’ interests by advocating win-win incentive structures and transmission expansion.

Key Colorado solar bill passes state legislature

Colorado’s utility-scale solar bill, HB 1164, promoted by the Interwest Energy Alliance, was signed into law in 2008. This new law allows the PUC to consider various non-utility benefits of utility-scale (2 MW and above) solar technologies and writes into law the legislative declaration of Amendment 37, which outlines the non-utility benefits of renewable energy resources. Additionally, and perhaps most importantly, HB 1164 explicitly allows the PUC to consider the costs of future greenhouse gas mitigation when evaluating future utility resource acquisitions.

Interwest cosponsors Sen. Salazar’s third annual energy summit

Once again this year, Interwest was a cosponsor of Senator Ken Salazar’s third annual energy summit in Denver. This year’s summit on 28 March brought together over 400 players in the state’s energy and financial sectors, for some of whom renewable energy was a relatively new topic, as well as top players from the federal level.

Interwest gains amendment to extend Utah sales tax exemptions

Interwest’s Utah lobbyist worked successfully with state legislators to include language extending state sales tax exemptions for wind, waste heat, and biomass through 2019.

Cox testifies before Congress

In April, Interwest’s executive director, Craig Cox, testified before a joint oversight hearing of the U. S. House Natural Resources Committee, Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands and the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources. He testified on the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Section 368 West-Wide Energy Corridor Process.

Interwest leads effort to fortify extension of Colorado’s sales taxation exemption

In 2008, the Interwest Energy Alliance led efforts to clarify the intent of a state sales tax exemption that passed, with our leadership, in 2007. Due to administrative misinterpretation of the 2007 law, we sought —and passed— legislation in 2008 clarifying that renewable energy equipment is exempt from state sales taxation, and making the exemption permanent.

Interwest lobbies for Utah Renewable Energy Zones; Governor pursues task force

In Utah, Interwest sought to pass legislation to create a task force similar to Colorado’s highly regarded “SB 91” task force, to map Utah’s “energy resource zones.” Such a report (and accompanying maps) would clearly outline where the best renewable resources are located, which would help galvanize support for new development and transmission capacity. Though this bill died in committee, Governor Jon Huntsman pursued this concept created a task force by executive order. This “Utah Renewable Energy Zone” task force is due to complete its final report by the end of 2008.

Interwest supports extension of federal tax credits

Throughout 2008, Interwest joined many other organizations (especially AWEA and SEIA), businesses and utilities in supporting advertising and outreach campaigns aimed at U.S. Senators and Representatives on the importance of extending federal renewable energy tax credits. In one of the final votes of the year, Congress passed a one-year wind PTC and eight-year solar ITC extension as part of the financial “bailout” bill.

WGA energy/wildlife initiatives

Interwest was a member of the Western Governors’ Association’s (WGA) Energy Working Group, which prepared a set of recommendations on how states should accommodate the growing demand for new energy corridors while maintaining, or enhancing, wildlife and plant habitats throughout the West. These recommendations were accepted by the governors at the WGA’s annual meeting in Jackson, Wyoming in June. As part of this initiative, the WGA established the Western Wildlife Habitat Council (WWHC), which may someday become an independent, affiliated organization, such as the Western Interstate Energy Board.

Key Arizona tax legislation passes

Interwest’s Arizona lobbying team successfully gained passage of HB 2614, to reduce the tax classification on generation and manufacturing facilities from a Class 1 tax rate (23.5%) to a Class 6 (5%) tax rate. This new law is expected to facilitate new utility-scale solar and wind development in Arizona.

Landmark Colorado utility resource acquisition docket advances renewable deployment

Together with a record number of other parties, Interwest intervened in Colorado PUC Docket No. 07A-447E, which considered Xcel Energy’s trailblazing new resource acquisition plan. Among other things, this plan called for at least 800 MW of new wind and at least 200 MW of new solar development through 2015, along with the closure of two smaller, obsolete coal plants to meet carbon-reduction goals.

Represented at the PUC by attorney Ron Lehr, Interwest’s goals in this docket were to support Xcel’s aggressive plans…and to make the case that even more renewable development could be achieved if several key issues were resolved. These issues included an aggressive study of how greater amounts of renewables can be integrated into the utility’s system as well as a more pro-active, long-term and coordinated approach to addressing the state’s serious transmission constraints.

Interwest introduced several expert witnesses, including economist Carl Hunt, who updated Interwest’s well-regarded 2006 “wind backcasting” study. Hunt reports that the 800 MW of wind proposed in Xcel Energy’s current resource acquisition plan through 2015 would result in nearly $248 million in consumer benefits with wind priced at 6.1 cents/kWh. This is why Interwest made the case that Xcel should acquire all cost-effective wind and renewable energy bids (above its proposed 800 MW of wind and 450 MW of solar), due to the demonstrated consumer benefits of these stable-cost technologies.

Interwest’s other expert witnesses included

Rick Gilliam (SunEdison), who testified on various issues related to PSCo’s solar program in his testimony, including the company’s distributed solar acquisition plan and the company’s proposed central solar acquisition;

Hank Price (Abengoa Solar), who documented the benefits of, and Colorado’s potential for, large-scale central solar power facilities; and

Brendan Kirby (formerly of Oak Ridge National Laboratory) who provided expert testimony on renewable energy integration issues.

In its written decision on this docket in September, the PUC approved Xcel’s proposed acquisition of 850 MW of “intermittent” renewable resources and up to 600 MW of solar with storage, along with the closure of two older coal plants to meet carbon-reduction goals. In a victory for independent power producers, the commission rejected Xcel’s attempt to acquire 40-60% ownership of new projects. Instead, the commission decided that Xcel could bid into a competitive procurement process, with an independent evaluator monitoring the process.

On 1 December 2008, Xcel Energy (Public Service Co. of Colorado) released its delayed 20% wind integration study, which was a key goal in Interwest’s case in this docket, as the study was due (but not done) in 2007. In this docket, Interwest took issue with Xcel’s initial proposed 20% integration cost estimates of $11.00 to $17.19/MWh. The new 20% study’s arrived at a figure of of $8.56.

Interwest comments on BLM’s Solar Energy Development PEIS

Interwest took part in, and submitted comments to, the BLM’s Solar Energy Development Programmatic EIS (PEIS) scoping process. A comment made by executive director Craig Cox at the BLM’s Colorado public comment session was carried in the New York Times. Happily, a moratorium on new solar development, to last for the duration of the scoping process, was reversed soon after the conclusion of the public comment period.

Interwest cosponsors forum on Utah’s first wind project

The Interwest Energy Alliance was pleased to be a sponsor of the “Utah Leaders Forum: Spanish Fork Wind Power Plant Panel Discussion & Viewing” in June. This event drew a number of legislators, commissioners and other key parties to Utah’s first utility-scale (20 MW) wind project in Spanish Fork.

Arizona’s first CSP project announced

At the Arizona Corporation Commission in 2008, Interwest supported the proposal of Abengoa Solar to build a 280 MW concentrating solar plant in Arizona. In October, the commission gave APS the go-ahead to build this plant, named Solana.

Arizona’s first wind project underway

Interwest has been working with the development community and the Arizona Corporation Commission for some years to facilitate the state’s first utility-scale wind project, and in July, Iberdrola Renewables announced a 64 MW project. Power from this project, named Dry Lake, will be sold to the Salt River Project.

Interwest sponsors Arizona Corporation Commission candidates’ forum

Interwest, along with the Solar Alliance and other industry partners, sponsored a debate in August between candidates to the Arizona Corporation Commission. Moderated by FERC Commissioner Marc Spitzer, this forum brought together all but one ACC candidate, elicited press coverage and elucidated the renewable energy policies of each commission candidate.

WGA WREZ project to identify renewable energy zones throughout the West

Interwest’s southwestern representative Amanda Ormond is co-chair of the Western Governors’ Association’s Western Renewable Energy Zones initiative, which launched in May to develop candidate study areas throughout the WECC that will be finalized into Renewable Energy Resource Zones.

Interwest helps allies in Nevada PUC docket

In Nevada, Interwest’s expert witness in the Colorado PUC resource acquisition docket worked to complete a study, to be filed with testimony from allied intervenors, on the consumer benefits of renewable energy. Carl Hunt, an economist, documents how increased acquisition of renewable energy helps provide a valuable hedge against fossil fuel price volatility.

Interwest takes part in Colorado PUC investigatory docket on transmission

The Interwest Energy Alliance is an active player in the Colorado PUC’s investigatory docket on electric transmission issues (Docket No. 08I-227E). Interwest’s initial comments focused on regional coordination of planning efforts, cost allocation/cost recovery issues (with reference to the NTTG process), improves responsiveness to interconnection requests, elimination of rate pancaking and broad stakeholder involvement.

Interwest spearheads landowner outreach effort on transmission development

Interwest helped spearhead an outreach/advocacy approach in cooperation with a number of wind developers pursuing development in the Burlington, Colorado area. The specific area is “Generation Development Area (GDA) 5,” as identified in the state SB 91 Task Force report.

Interwest sponsors utility-scale solar briefing at Colorado state capitol

In August, Interwest sponsored an industry briefing on utility-scale solar at the Colorado state capitol. Attended by over 125 key stakeholders, this briefing featured presentations from leading companies in the utility-scale solar industry (Abengoa, Ausra, Brightsource, OptiSolar and SunEdison).

Interwest launches collaboration with industry and key wildlife and conservation leaders

Working with the West’s top wildlife, public lands and conservation groups, Interwest helped launch a new collaborative effort between industry and these non-governmental organizations on seeking common approaches to building markets for new projects and transmission in a truly consensus-based approach. This effort has been christened the “Colorado Renewables and Conservation Collaborative” (“CRCC”).

Interwest comments on Colorado wind development guidelines

In Colorado, Interwest took the lead in coordinating industry comments on new draft wind development guidelines issued by the Colorado Division of Wildlife. These guidelines, which Interwest complained were overly restrictive and not reflective of actual circumstances on the ground, were officially retracted the day after the comment period ended. Interwest now seeks to work collaboratively between industry and the NGO community on realistic guidelines that enjoy support from all stakeholders. The vehicle for this collaboration is likely to be the Colorado Renewables and Conservation Collaborative, described above.

Interwest takes part in new state task force on renewable transmission infrastructure

The Interwest Energy Alliance has been named to the advisory board overseeing the implementation of a new U.S. DOE grant administered by the Governor’s Energy Office. This new “Renewable Energy Development Infrastructure” task force (“REDI”) will use the $400,000 DOE grant to develop technical, financial and policy frameworks to expedite the construction of an additional 1,000 megawatts of renewable resource capacity onto the Colorado electricity grid. This effort is essentially a transmission follow-on to the successful “SB 91” task force in which Interwest also participated, which mapped and quantified Colorado’s developable energy resource areas.