Washington (Platts)--13Jun2007
The Renewable Portfolio Standard would "raise taxes and electric rates in Tennessee," but the money needed to meet the standard could be used to implement advanced coal measures, according to Republican Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee. The RPS is expected to be offered as an amendment to the energy bill being debated in the Senate by Energy Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman, Democrat-New Mexico. Under the measure, 15% of energy generated in states would have to come from renewable sources, such as wind, by 2020 or utilities would have to pay a 2?/kW tax penalty for failing to meet that goal. The Tennessee Valley Authority, which provides Tennessee with 60% of its electricity from coal, estimates the tax would raise $410 million, which would be the cost of the proposed wind turbines. That money would be better spent on clean coal, efficiency measures or nuclear facilities, Alexander said. During floor debate on the bill, Alexander said with some of that money TVA could purchase one new scrubber every nine months to clean emissions from TVA's 11 coal-fired power plants. Currently, TVA operates six scrubbers at its 11 coal-fired power plants. Two more are under construction, one at Paradise Fossil plant in Kentucky, which will begin operating later this year, and one at Bull Run Fossil plant in Tennessee, expected to come on-line in 2009. When finished, more than 40% of TVA's coal capacity will be equipped with scrubbers. Tennessee is just not a windy state, Alexander said, making wind power not reliable. TVA's Buffalo Mountain Wind Farm operates at just 19% to 24% of capacity due to a lack of wind, below the 35% to 38% capacity the wind industry claims new facilities generate, Alexander said. "Just to produce 2% of [the state's] electricity, you have to run 720 wind turbines. It doesn't make sense for our state when wind only blows 22% of the time," Alexander said during a teleconference with reporters on Tuesday afternoon. The only places in the state to build the turbines are on the ridges and crests of the Smoky Mountains. "It makes strip mining look like a decorative art," he said. --Regina Johnson, regina_johnson@platts.com and --Cathy Cash, cathy_cash@platts.com This is an excerpt. For more news, request a free trial to Platts Coal Trader at http://www.platts.com/Request%20More%20Information/index.xml?src=story
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