EL PASO, Texas, Jan 26, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall

 

Pursuant to EPE's New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (NMPRC) approved 2005 Procurement Plan, EPE received approval to issue, in January 2006, its 2006 Diversity Request for Proposals (RFP) for Renewable Energy Supply. The RFP solicits competitive proposals for diverse renewable energy resources that meet the requirements of the New Mexico Renewable Energy Act (REA) and NMPRC Renewable Energy Rule to comply with the NMPRC's annual Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). The Diversity RFP is an attempt to solicit and evaluate diverse types of renewable energy resources, available starting in January of 2008 and thereafter, for EPE's RPS.

Assuming renewable energy resources are available, EPE will diversify its renewable energy portfolio in New Mexico taking into consideration the overall reliability, availability, dispatch flexibility and cost of the various renewable resources made available by the providers and generators. EPE is seeking diverse resources available on or after January 1, 2008. Because EPE already has acquired a fixed amount of Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) from wind resources in the years 2008 through 2011, EPE primarily will seek non- wind energy resources and will consider available wind energy resources in greater quantities on or after January 1, 2011. EPE's purpose is to achieve diversity in its renewable energy resource mix if diverse types of renewable energy resources are available.

EPE's remaining RPS requirement in New Mexico is approximately 67,000 MWh in 2008 and up to approximately 76,500 MWh in 2011. EPE will evaluate the proposals received in accordance with the NMPRC's Rule that assigns different weighted megawatt-hour values to each renewable energy resource type. Participants in the Diversity RFP should become familiar with the NMPRC's Rule, which is attached to the RFP. EPE may elect to select a combination of RECs, with or without taking physical delivery of the associated energy, from different sources and resource types to meet its RPS requirements.

EPE's 2006 Diversity RFP for Renewable Energy Supply is posted on its internet website ( http://www.epelectric.com ) and on the Department of Energy's Green Power Network ( http://www.eere.energy.gov/greenpower/finacial  ). EPE's 2006 Diversity RFP was also mailed to 101 entities. EPE will hold a Pre-Bid Meeting on February 2, 2006 at 9 am (MST) in the sixth floor conference room of EPE's Centre Building located at 123 W. Mills Avenue, El Paso, Texas 79901. Participants who plan to attend the Pre-Bid Meeting should notify EPE by e-mail at  purchasing@epelectric.com  to aid EPE in assessing the number of attendees and to allow EPE to prepare the appropriate accommodations. EPE encourages diverse renewable energy resource providers to participate.

El Paso Electric (NYSE: EE) is a regional electric utility providing generation, transmission and distribution service to approximately 334,000 retail and wholesale customers in a 10,000 square mile area of the Rio Grande valley in west Texas and southern New Mexico. EPE has a net installed generation capacity of approximately 1,500 MW. EPE's common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EE.

SOURCE El Paso Electric

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