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Solar electric growing in Central Minnesota

By Tim King

We were driving around in rural Stearns County earlier this year and we discovered that there’s a lot more than corn growing there these days. There’s a huge wind electric generating project south of Sauk Centre. We also found two large scale solar electric projects. One of them is near St. Joseph and the other is not far from Avon. Along with these three industrial scale projects were a number of farmstead and homestead wind electric projects scattered throughout the countryside. Renewable energy seems to have come of age in Minnesota.
Westmill Solar Cooperative, England
http://westmillsolar.coop
Thanks Wikipedia


That’s why I was surprised when the U.S. Department of Energy tried to pitch coal to world leaders at the Climate Summit in Bonn, Germany in November. Not surprisingly the American coal promoters were scoffed off the stage. World leaders, just like the business people and investors in Stearns County, know that renewables are the future and coal is a zombie industry.

If you don’t believe me maybe you’ll believe Ben Fowke. He’s the Chief Executive of Xcel Energy, one of Minnesota’s largest electricity generators. In October Fowke made a presentation to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission. He told the Commission that Xcel was going to convert to 60% renewable energy production in twelve years - by 2030, according to Annie Levenson-Falk of the Citizens Utility Board.

Guess why Xcel is going to 60% renewables?

Renewable energy is the cheapest source of electricity available today. Fowke reported that it’s cheaper to build new wind turbines than to simply operate even the lowest-cost of Xcel’s existing coal power plants. Yes, you did read that right. Building new turbines is cheaper than operating existing coal plants! And, just two years earlier, Xcel had told Bloomberg News that wind was less expensive than natural gas.

So why promote coal? You’ve got me!

The good news is that electricity from renewable sources is not only cheaper for companies like Xcel to produce but it ends up being less expensive for electricity consumers like you and me. 

Thanks to years of leadership by businesses like Excel, and the leadership in the Minnesota legislature, electricity in Minnesota is about the least expensive in the United States. Only six other states have less expensive electricity. Electricity consumers in Minnesota, Colorado, Hawaii and California are saving a lot of money on their electric bills, thanks to substantial investments in alternative energy and energy efficiency, according to Forbes magazine. 

So why promote coal? It’s so embarrassing!
Castle Gate Power Plant in Utah, Wikipedia

There’s another plus in Xcel’s leap toward a renewable energy future. Xcel’s vision achieves an 80% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in 2030, according to CEO Fowkes. Previously Excel had projected that it would reach that level of greenhouse gas emissions reduction by 2050. 

Many years ago Minnesota’s political and business leaders made a commitment to a renewable energy future. That long term comittment, along with the vision and commitment of today’s leaders and investors, is helping us financially today and will provide a more sustainable future for our children and grandchildren in the decades to come. 


Renewable energy is cheaper and cleaner then coal. So what’s the deal with Donald Trump’s Department of Energy?

Comments

  1. TurtlewomanFebruary 27, 2018 at 8:44 PM

    Thanks, Tim. I love seeing renewable energy sources in the area!

    ReplyDelete

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