Utility programs sell 1.9 billion kWh of green power in 2004
GOLDEN, Colorado, US, April 20, 2005 (Refocus Weekly)
A municipal utility in Texas is the leader in the United States for green power programs.
Austin Energy sold 334,446,101 kWh of green power from wind, landfill gas and
small hydro facilities last year, representing an average of 38,200 kW,
according to the latest data from the U.S. Department of Energy's National
Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The ranking of utility green power programs
is for voluntary programs which allow consumers to support additional production
of electricity from renewable resources, and covers 600 utilities in 34 states.
In second place was Portland General Electric, which sold 262,142,564 kWh of
existing geothermal, wind and small hydro for an average 29,900 kW. PacifiCorpc
was third, with 191,838,079 kWh of wind, biomass and solar for an average of
21,900 kW; Sacramento Municipal Utility District with 176,774,804 kWh of
landfill gas, wind, small hydro and solar (average 20,200 kW); Xcel Energy with
137,946,000 kWh of wind (15,700); National Grid with 88,204,988 kWh of biomass,
wind, small hydro and solar (10,100); Los Angeles Department of Power &
Water with 75,528,746 kWh of wind and landfill gas (8,600); OG&E Electric
Services with 56,672,568 kWh of wind (6,500); Puget Sound Energy with 46,110,000
kWh of wind, solar and biogas (5,300); and We Energies with 2004 green power
sales of 40,906,410 kWh from landfill gas, wind and small hydro (average of
4,700 kW).
Ranked by the total number of customer participants, Xcel Energy is first with
40,990, followed by PacifiCorp with 36,125, Portland General Electric with
33,491, SMUD with 28,527, LADWP with 27,293, National Grid with 14,978, Puget
Sound Energy with 14,074, Alliant Energy with 11,544, We Energies with 11,120,
and Florida Power & Light with 10,674.
Lenox (Iowa) Municipal Utilities is top when ranked by customer participation
with 14.5%, after having started its green power program in 2003. Second place
rank of 10.9% was identified as City of Palo Alto Utilities in California, down
to a tie for tenth place between Madison Gas & Electric and River Falls
Municipal Utilities with 3.8% each.
"Customer participation in utility green power programs continues to grow
across the country," says Lori Bird of NREL. “These utilities are the
national leaders.”
NREL says customer choice programs are a powerful stimulus for growth in the
supply of renewable energy. Last year, sales of green power through utility
programs continued to exhibit strong growth, reaching 1.9 billion kWh, and are
part of a larger marketing industry that counts one-half million customers
across the U.S. and supports 1,600 MW of generation capacity.
Several large utilities have lowered their rate premium charged in green pricing
programs, partly due to the improving economics of relying on green power
sources compared to traditional fossil fuels as a primary factor.
“Purchases of renewable energy through utility green power programs are
becoming increasingly affordable for consumers,” explains Blair Swezey of NREL.
NREL is the Department of Energy's primary national laboratory for renewable
energy and energy efficiency research. Its Energy Analysis Office performs
annual analyses of green power market trends.
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