Magnificent Minnesota: Study Says 70% Renewables By 2050 Within Reach

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Most solar observers who look at the Midwest and identify what state leads that group of states almost inevitably settle on Minnesota as the far-and-away leader.

(Here’s the obligatory note suggesting that Illinois is hot on Minnesota’s tail and that it had better keep moving forward if it wants to remain the name on everyone’s lips when it comes to a Midwestern solar leader).

But the Land of 10,000 Lakes (which is actually closer to 15,000, but who’s counting?) is well known for its progressive solar policy, particularly when it comes to community solar, where its reputation doesn’t just make it stand out in the Midwest but in the entire country.

And it benefits too from having a utility that, after long and involved battles, decided to join the Solar Revolution instead of fighting it. Xcel is now not only on board with solar development but in some cases is leading the charge (though it still isn’t an enthusiastic supporter of rooftop solar, preferring instead the utility-scale and community solar farms that it has control over).

[wds id=”3″]

Now there’s even strong support for the expansion of solar power and other forms of renewable energy in the state as the latest study for the state’s Department of Commerce suggests that the state could get up to 70% of its electricity by 2050 without destroying the state’s economy.

The Minneapolis Star Tribune has the details:

The deployment of more solar and wind generation would be no more costly than new natural gas power, a cheap source of electricity, according to the study done for the state Department of Commerce. Enough solar generation could be added cost-effectively by 2030 to meet Minnesota’s ambitious solar-power goals.

So that’s great news for solar advocates in the state, some of whom have been pushing for a much more aggressive renewable portfolio standard for the past couple of years. Could this latest study add fuel to that fire and get it passed? Could Minnesota boldly join states like California and Hawaii and go all-in on 100% renewables?

OK, maybe that last is a pipe dream for now, but the new study should buoy hope that Minnesota can stay on the Midwest’s leading edge when it comes to solar development, at least for the foreseable future.

More:

Study says Minnesota can economically reach renewable energy goals by 2050

Paying A Price: Wholesalers Face Defections If They Move Too Slowly On Renewables

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

One Colorado co-op has set the stage to defect from one wholesaler because they don’t believe it’s moving fast enough to incorporate renewables into its portfolio – and the long-term implications are potentially startling.

As Western Energy News reports:

The Delta-Montrose Electric Association will vote in October on rule changes that would allow another power supplier to help finance its exit from a contract with Tri-State Generation and Transmission.

The association is among Tri-State’s largest customers, and its defection could heighten the risk of a mass exodus as others are forced to cover a larger share of costs for operating the wholesaler’s infrastructure, including its coal-fired power plants.

[wds id=”3″]

The problem, at least according to Delta’s CEO, is the arbitrary cap Tri-States puts on local generation. That significantly limits the amount of renewable energy the co-op can have in its own portfolio. From Western Energy News:

Several co-ops have been stymied by Tri-State’s 5 percent cap on local generation, and Tri-State and Delta-Montrose continue to wait on a rehearing from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on the matter.

“We’ve been stifled from our ability to have flexibility to develop those resources and make them economical for our membership under the confines of our current contract,” [Delta CEO Jansen] Bronec said.

While Delta’s defection would have an immediate impact on Tri-State, the decision to move away from coal-generated electricity could have implications far beyond Colorado’s borders. It should send the message to wholesalers like Tri-State that arbitrarily clinging to outdated fossil-fuel generation is a way to lose members at an alarming rate. As prices continue to drop for solar and wind production, co-ops are not going to sit idly by and pay higher prices just because the wholesaler doesn’t want to change.

The Solar Revolution is happening, and smaller entities like Delta are starting to catch on. Once they realize the power is in their hands, look for more wholesalers to bend to the will of their members – and look for more renewable energy to come online as they do so.

More:

Colorado co-op vote sets table for defection from coal power wholesaler

Renewables, FTW! Price Drops Send Natural Gas Reeling

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

What Happened: For. The. Win. A new report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance suggests renewables’ prices are falling so quickly that coal is dead and even natural gas may be on its deathbed.

The cost of new solar plants dropped 20% over the past 12 months, while onshore wind prices dropped 12%, according to the latest Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) report.
Since 2010, the prices for lithium-ion batteries — crucial to energy storage — have plummeted a stunning 79 percent, the report also indicates.
The kill quote: “The economic case for building new coal and gas capacity is crumbling,” as BNEF’s chief of energy economics, Elena Giannakopoulou, told Bloomberg.

How long will the blue flame of natural gas continue to burn as an alternative to fossil fuels? If Bloomberg New Energy Finance is right, not much longer.

SolarWakeup’s View: Lookie here – it seems like I might be right about a thing.

Let’s back up for a second. On Monday, I wrote about the theory that renewables may be falling in price so quickly that natural gas, long touted as the most effective “transition energy,” might be surpassed by renewables soon. As evidence, I cited recent decisions in California’s and Arizona’s regulatory bodies to deny utilities the right to build new peaker natural gas plants as evidence. And near the end, I wrote this:

Energy storage is the key. As the technology gets better and the prices come down, the need for a transition energy like natural gas becomes increasingly less important.

And four days later, Think Progress alerted me to a new Bloomberg New Energy Finance report that said, well, nearly exactly that.

[wds id=”3″]

(In case you’re headed to Vegas, I predict the Cleveland Browns are going to win the 2019 Super Bowl, and Tyrod Taylor will be its MVP. Remember you read it here first.)

As I read Think Progress’ story, this quotation just leaped off the page:

“The economic case for building new coal and gas capacity is crumbling,” as BNEF’s chief of energy economics, Elena Giannakopoulou, told Bloomberg.

Incredible, right? I started writing about solar in 2011, and you could never have convinced then me that by 2018 we might already be “Bye, Felicia”-ing natural gas into history. (Which, as an aside, makes promises to “save coal” or “revive coal” even more ludicrous, but I digress.)

So here’s to natural gas who, I presume, will desperately try to hang on to its 15 minutes of fame by hook-and-crook – but ultimately, in the not-too-distant future, it will end up in the ash heap of history.

Bye, natural gas.

More:

Will Natural Gas Lose Its Place As A Transition Energy?

Stunning drops in solar, wind costs mean economic case for coal, gas is ‘crumbling’

Bonus:

I love etymological videos. For those of you who don’t know, here’s the etymology of “Bye, Felicia.”