OG&E unveils a green energy plan

[metro]

This is much better than the coal-fired junk OG&E was proposing last year...We need to plan a sustainable future, not a fuel based future.


OG&E's unveils green energy plan
Daily Oklahoman
By Jack Money
Business Writer

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co. proposes building a, high-capacity electrical transmission line between Woodward and Oklahoma City that allow customers to choose "100 percent green” in their electricity buy.

OG&E on Monday filed its plan with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, asking that its request to build the 345 kilovolt line, and pass along the costs to customers, be approved by the end of July.

The utility said it needs quick action so it can keep plans to build the $211 million transmission line on schedule at the current costs and to assure its wind farm development can be coordinated effectively with the availability of the new transmission capacity, utility officials said Monday.

OG&E said it wants to begin providing a renewable energy option, and the line, which could carry from 700 and 1,000 megawatts, is an important first step, officials said Monday.

"The comprehensive filing reflects our integrated approach to renewables development in Oklahoma,” said Pete Delaney, chairman, president and chief executive of the utility's parent, OGE Energy Corp.

"OG&E is seeking permission to not only build the infrastructure requested to provide a much greater supply of wind energy, but ... to enable our customers to be 100 percent green in their electricity purchase.”

The cost of the plan to the average residential customer — including the cost of adding both the transmission line and expected wind generation the utility outlines in its request — is estimated at $1.50 per month in 2010.

The filing also details the utility's commitment to quadruple its wind energy capacity in the state to 770 megawatts.

"Wind energy has great value as a hedge against increasing natural gas prices and the potential cost associated with federal greenhouse gas legislation,” Delaney said.

With approval from the commission, the OG&E renewable energy purchase program could be implemented early next year with the company's existing 170 MW of wind generation. The program would be expanded as new wind generation capacity comes in 2010 and again by 2012.

Utility officials said the new line is required because existing transmission facilities in the area are nearly at capacity. The new line will be used to transport electricity produced by current and future wind farms in northwestern Oklahoma, regardless of what companies own them, to the Oklahoma City area.

Revenues from carrying that power will help offset the cost to OG&E customers of building the line, officials said.

Oklahoma needs $3.4 billion in electrical line construction to upgrade its high-voltage grid and harvest all the wind power coming out of the panhandles of Oklahoma and Texas, a study completed earlier this year said.

Once the lines are in place, though, the study also estimates that power generated by quickly-growing wind farms in the Panhandle could be sold to other power markets such as Chicago and Atlanta for as much as $2.4 billion a year.

[veritas]

A nice gesture but a drop in the bucket compared to the power needs of the metro area.

Sign me up for more nuke power.

[mmonroe]

This, at the current time, sounds like a Fantastic Idea!

[blangtang]

Southwest Power Pool should pay for the transmission lines, duh!

" OG&E unveils a green energy plan"

'Green' is the new catchphrase to saddle the public with more costs!

let it be known that I'm all for wind turbine generated electricity.

[venture]

Good and all, but won't help us lower our end-user costs.

I've started looking into the costs for solar panels and even a personal wind generator. The costs may be too high, but OG&E's costs aren't exactly going to go down.

Would be nice if there were a project for neighborhoods to go energy independant buy helping to mass deploy solar panels and wind generators.

[mmonroe]

I why not just start a co-op and see where we go?? eh?

[FRISKY]

Wind chargers and solar panels are not economically feasible at this time. That will only change if Oklahoma creates a rebate program and the electric companies change the way they buy electricity from home generation.

The electric companies charge full price for the electricity you use from their grid, but only pay pennies-on-the-dollar for power you put back into the grid. And to make it worse, they don’t subtract the energy you produce from the usage shown on your meter, they simply charge you for the full amount of energy used, at full price, and only then do they pay you pennies for what you put back into their system.

It would be much better for those wanting to install equipment to help with the impending energy crisis if the power companies would subtract the energy produced from home generation from the meter reading before you pay full price for it.

[bombermwc]

Just give me some fusion power and call it a day.

[The Old Downtown Guy]

A nice gesture but a drop in the bucket compared to the power needs of the metro area.

Sign me up for more nuke power.

And, can we store the spent fule and other waste in your garage for a few thousand years?

[FRISKY]

Whether fusion or fission, nuclear power would be my first choice also, but it won’t happen anytime soon because too many people are fanatically afraid of it and no one wants a nuclear power plant in their backyard. It will probably be another twenty or thirty years before people forget about tragedies such as Chernobyl and Three Mile Island and start considering nuclear power as a viable resource again.

[veritas]

And, can we store the spent fule and other waste in your garage for a few thousand years?

Breeder reactors cut down on this problem. Furthermore, I know a spot or two in Death Valley where nuke waste would go nicely.

/wind and solar are all rainbows and unicorns but not a long term sollution
//not changing my power consumptions habits
///slashy, slashy

[BoulderSooner]

And, can we store the spent fule and other waste in your garage for a few thousand years?

nuke energy is the most efficient that there is around ... and on a lesser note for me it is by far the most eco friendly ... not even close .. and it is very very safe technology ..

there is a reason .. that we have nuke energy in all of our aircraft carriers most subs .. and several satellites ..

[mmonroe]

nuke energy in satellites? ooooHH!!

[OUGrad05]

What we need is a balanced approach to energy. Going all wind or all solar or all coal or all nuke or all gas is simply ridiculous. This nation and this state will continue to consume more and more electricity going forward. OG&E needs to build a gas plant and a few wind farms to supplement their coal generation. Furthermore solar power is only feasible on a limited basis depending on where you are in the US and obviously it doesn't work at night.

There's not a silver bullet to our energy issues, instead a balanced level headed approach is ultimately the best solution for meeting our energy demands in the future while maintaining a fairly stable price point.

[bombermwc]

I actually think we will have to end up with a nuke plant. They are SOOO incredibly cost prohibitive to the energy company that they have to use them for so long in order to get the cost back, that they can end up being in service longer than they were constructed for.

If you build a nuke plant today, you're guranteed that it's going to be greener and better constructed to last than say in the 70's. And waste handling is SOO much better now. With the closed systems, you don't have to worry about the nasty water. And I forget the name, but there's the type that pretty much won't melt down because it requires work to make the reaction happen, not to slow it down...little help here.

I'd go for it for sure. Then that whole NIMBY thing comes into play. Which community is going to be willing to have it in their town? And will OG&E try and force it's customers to pay for it? I say screw that...just like with their coal crap a little while back. If they want to build it, they should pay for it. They should have paid for the ice damage too, but whatever.

[venture]

OG&E will always make it so customers will be paying significantly more to cover whatever the solution is.

[OUGrad05]

OG&E will always make it so customers will be paying significantly more to cover whatever the solution is.

Thats part of running a business, you make money. To make money you have to pass costs on to your customer.