Renewable Resources are Intermittent
Many renewable resources — wind and solar power, as an example — are intermittent
Northwest Rural Public Power District supports renewable energy when the system is economically feasible. This support has been shown over the past 18 years with the implementation of a photovoltaic program for livestock watering applications in remote areas. Today, approximately 75 PV systems exist and are operating within Northwest’s Service Territory. This program was initiated long before it became the popular thing to do.
Renewables is defined as sources of energy that are naturally replenishable, including wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and small hydro.
Distributed generation is defined as decentralized generation technologies designed to supplement or replace power produced by large generating plants. In most cases, distributed generation is located at or near the point of use. For homeowners and farmers, examples include “backyard” renewable energy systems such as anaerobic digesters, small wind turbines, photovoltaics, and microhydro plants. Also called on-site generation, dispersed generation, or distributed energy.
Northwest Rural Public Power District will make purchases from generating facilities with 25kw or less nameplate capacity which are Qualifying Facilities. Tri-State G&T, Northwest’s power supplier will contract for all generation resources with greater than 25kw nameplate capacity at any one site.
Northwest Rural understands the complexities of these electric issues and has a streamlined process to allow safe, reliable, efficient and cost effective interconnection of such facilities (wind, solar, biomass or hydro) to the distribution system and the sale of any excess output to the District.
Interconnecting with Northwest’s distribution system may require you to incur additional costs that may impact any economic analysis or payback that you have calculated. The specific interconnection costs will depend upon several variables including, but not limited to, size, location, and operation of the facility. Interconnection costs include switching, transmission, distribution, safety provisions and administrative costs incurred by the District directly related to the installation and maintenance of the physical facilities necessary to permit safe interconnected operation with a qualifying facility. Each qualifying facility is obligated to pay any interconnection costs, which the District may incur.
Monthly Rate 25kw and less:
A customer/member will be subject to the same retail rate as those who are not generators. Customer-generators served under this rate remain responsible for all charges from their normal rate schedule (residential, general service, small commercial etc.) including monthly minimum charges. To clarify: if the customers-generators energy use exceeds the energy they generate then the bill will reflect a retail charge for the energy used beyond what is offset by their generation. The rate for kilowatt-hours received from the DG Owner / Operator shall be based on Northwest Rural’s monthly average purchased power cost.
Base charge means the local distribution system’s costs associated with providing electric facilities for the customer-generator that are not avoidable by the local distribution utility as a result of the operation of a qualified generation unit.
Monthly Energy Charge or Generation Credit
All energy used or received under this rate schedule will be priced at the monthly average cost of purchase power paid to the District's power supplier per kWh per month. The monthly rate will automatically adjust with the wholesale power supplier rate. This rate is still being subsidized by other customers, as the Distributed Generation is not firm power – as the power may not be produced or provided when needed.
In every electric bill there are two primary components: The 1st component is to cover the cost to purchase the wholesale energy (Kwh) that is passed on to the customer.
The 2nd component is for the cost of the electrical distribution system that will deliver the electric energy to the customer. In the case of an interconnected system such as renewables the same distribution system is required to carry any surplus generation from the interconnected system.
Distributed Generation power without the distribution system will be available only when the distributed generation is producing. Solar: Lights will only be on during hours of sunlight and with only partial lights in the morning, evening and cloudy periods. Wind: According to data recorded from actual wind generators located from the Mexican border to the Canadian border through the high plains including Nebraska and wind information from Northwest’s service area, the lights will be on only 30-40% of the time with much of it at partial power.
The Bill
The regular electrical bill will have a service charge that covers billing related activities only. Within the sale of every Kwh is a component required to cover the cost to have the distribution system in place (installation, maintenance and operation).
Distribution generators reduce purchases in the rate blocks – Northwest does not have to purchase that power and that cost is saved. However, Northwest does not receive some or all of the revenue required to have the lines in place when the customer needs power and their generator is not producing. This is a subsidy that neighbors are giving to the distributed generator owner.
With larger distributed generators 10kw -25kw the owner may not purchase any Kwh that month and their neighbors will be paying for all of the electric system cost ($75.00 per month) so the distributed generator owner can still have power when the distributed generator is not producing.
If the distributed generator is large enough, it may produce more Kwh than the customer uses for the month. Northwest will purchase those Kwh at the same price that we would have purchased them wholesale elsewhere however, the $75 for facilities will still be missing.
Many sales people who make a profit from our customers want a so called “Net Metering” policy where we would pay full price for Kwh received which would include our wholesale purchase price plus the $75.00 Northwest would normally get for facilities. With this scenario, the neighbors will be subsidizing the distributed generation owner at a rate of not just $75.00/month for facilities but would pay them for the avoided wholesale cost plus the $75 that would normally be received for facilities to carry the Kwh away. This would be $75 not paid for facilities plus $75 above wholesale paid to the distributed generator. This would be a total subsidy of $75 + $75 or $150 paid by the neighbors. Plus whatever government subsidy through grants and the stimulus package tax credits, which comes from tax dollars.
People harvested wind years ago and stored that power in batteries, allowing Windchargers to be somewhat self-sustaining. Today, renewable technology has not advanced enough to be feasible or cost effective because they are not self-sustainable without storage nor do they have the ability to produce energy 24/7.
Granted the new stimulus package recently passed provides incentives to defray the initial installation costs, but even so renewable energy installations are a doubling of the infrastructure already in place.
The truth of the matter is that all customers pay the $75.00 through Kwh purchases and when the distributed generator does not pay some or all costs – then the neighbor does.
Northwest Rural Public Power District supports renewable energy when economically feasible. It is the intent of Northwest Rural Public Power District to operate the distribution system to maintain a high level of service to their customers, to maintain a high level of power quality and to operate the facilities in a way that ensures the safety of the public and employees.
Northwest Rural, a not-for-profit organization, strives for efficiency and looks for ways to minimize costs, because all costs are passed on to the consumer or (rate payer) and when cost savings are achieved the consumer or (rate payer) is the beneficiary. However, when subsidies occur the remaining customers must pay the bill.