In December 2006, after lengthy and contentious debate, the Truckee Donner Public Utility District made a monumental decision: it decided to forego a long-term contract which would have meant that a majority of the district’s power would be coal-fired for the next five decades (for a complete story about the debate, see Moonshine Ink, Vin. 5 Nip 1). At the time, while there was widespread opposition to locking the district into a polluting power supply such as coal, there was also some queasiness among the public and board members who asked the question: So if we don’t get our power from coal, where do we get our power? It’s a year and a half later, has the TDPUD been able to answer that question?
General Manager Michael Holley summarizes the district’s current approach to energy as ‘a risk management approach. We are going to obtain power from several smaller vendors instead of having all of our eggs in one basket.’
According to TDPUD Power Supply Engineer Steve Hollabaugh, the diversified portfolio of power providers includes a hefty serving of renewable energy.
‘TDPUD’s current energy portfolio has set a goal of obtaining at least 21 percent of our power from renewables by 2010, which is pretty ambitious since the State of California has set a goal of 20 percent by the year 2017,’ Hollabaugh says. ‘We are in a good position to obtain power from renewables, because people are installing renewables in Nevada and it is easier to sell those to us than to try to get permits to sell to the big California utilities.’
Renewable energy suppliers include geothermal, wind, small and large hydroelectric projects, and solar. Currently the TDPUD gets about 5 percent of its power from a hydroelectric facility at Stampede Reservoir. Geothermal projects are currently being built in Nevada, and they may be the most dependable sources of renewable energy in the short term. Wind energy projects have been proposed in Wyoming, Utah and Idaho. Wind energy is currently more economical then solar, although given the availability of government rebates for the installation of small scale and commercial solar projects, they are certainly becoming an important part of the mix.
A key factor for utilities is what is known as the ‘load profile.’ Most utilities in California have peak loads during the middle of the day, in the hottest days of the summer. For TDPUD, the peak loads are in the middle of the night in winter. This is an advantage for the district because it is easier to buy power when other utilities don’t need it. The disadvantage however, is that renewable sources such as wind and solar reach their peak of production in the middle of the day.
In other words, wind and solar energy are non-firm. This means, Hollabaugh says, ‘that you cannot depend upon them all the time and you have to have a backup source, such as natural gas.’ The TDPUD and Sierra Pacific Power, which owns the transmission lines that TDPUD uses, are part of the Utah Association of Municipal Power Suppliers. UAMPS, the company that engineered the coal contract that TDPUD eventually rejected, has power suppliers in Nevada, Utah, Idaho and Wyoming. Thus TDPUD is electrically not in California, but is still under the control of California laws regulating utilities. Since California has effectively banned nuclear and coal power generation in the state, most of the TDPUD’s remaining 79 percent of power must come from natural gas. While it is clean burning, natural gas is a fossil fuel byproduct with some of the same long-term supply issues as oil and gasoline.
Conservation Commitment
In addition to seeking out a variety of sources for power, the TDPUD has made a major commitment towards energy conservation. Part of that commitment is the hiring of Steve Poncelet as Public Information and Conservation Manager. He joins Scott Terrell at the PUD as the primary staff members responsible for encouraging conservation.
‘We are really pleased how efforts to conserve energy in the community have really ramped up. Sometimes energy conservation concepts are difficult to understand, but people are really getting it,’ Terrell says.
The basic concept of conservation is that the less energy we use the less we need to buy. In fact, California places energy efficiency as the state’s top energy priority, followed by renewable energy generation, according to the state’s ‘Energy Action Plan.’
‘Every KW we save is one less that we have to buy,’ Poncelet says. ‘Energy conservation allows you to serve more customers with the [same] amount of assets we have. Every dollar we spend on conservation puts three dollars back into the community. Programs that can put money in the consumers pockets, address environmental issues and save energy are a win-win-win.’
Conservation Administrator Scott Terrell says, ‘Lighting is the most cost effective opportunity for people.’ Whether you get the free CFL bulbs the district is handing out, or $2 per bulb towards your own purchase, the payback is quick and the money you save is not taxed. Plus, if the bulbs are installed in the highest use areas, consumers will save about $10 a month, Poncelet says.
But a look at the list of the district’s conservation programs shows lighting is only a small part of a TDPUD Conservation program. With a growing budget – $118,500 in 2007 to more than $380,000 in 2008 – the program also includes rebates for appliance replacements, solar installations, and building energy audits (see sidebar). In addition, the budget covers marketing, administration and evaluating the programs for their effectiveness.
‘We heard loud and clear from the community that they would like to see the TDPUD invest more in conservation programs and raise its status in the organization,’ Poncelet says. ‘General Manager Michael Holley created my position to bring conservation to the management level. A significant effort is being made in 2008 towards marketing the programs that we provide.’
The TDPUD also created a Conservation Committee, whose goal was to bring recommendations related to energy conservation to the Board. A draft of their recommendations was presented in May and a final version is due in July. Conservation Committee Chairman Doug Grandy says that the Committee has been feeding portions of the plan to the Board over the past year. ‘To their credit the board has already adopted some of the ideas…I think this is great. It speaks to the momentum of the effort,’ Grandy says. ‘We are seeing a lot of success and have seen a pretty dramatic turnaround in the TDPUD in the last year, a lot of that can be attributed to changes in the staff. The new general manager is a breath of fresh air.’
Grandy and the Committee emphasize the cost effectiveness of energy efficiency. Wholesale power supply costs are currently running in the range of 6 to 7 cents per KW.
During 2007, energy efficiency programs cost 1/2 cent per KW saved. In 2008 they are running in the range of 1.4 cents per KW saved. So what does this mean? To simplify matters, let’s pretend that TDPUD customers annually need 100 KW of energy (if only) at 7 cents per KW. The district’s power load would cost $7. (Actually in 2007 TDPUD customers used 154 million KW hours, with a peak load of 36,000 KW.)
But if TDPUD spends 1.4 cents per KW to reduce energy needs to 90 units, the total cost would only be $6.44. Part of the savings would be passed onto customers as well.
While the first level of energy savings are the easiest, and it gets more expensive to reduce more energy use, Grandy believes there is still a lot of potential for spending on energy conservation.
Power Engineer Hollabaugh cautions that while conservation is key, it won’t provide the power consumers still require. ‘Conservation is another big part of the puzzle, it can be cheaper than buying more power – but it’s not the whole picture,’ he says. ‘You still need power generation. We still want to always have power to keep our houses running and heated.’
Ron Hemig, a TDPUD Boardmember since 1994 is ‘generally pleased with progress we have made with our new direction.’ He says the district is moving forward with its power portfolio but that there are a lot of unknowns.
‘It’s still a wildcard when you look at the various scenarios we are working on, versus known costs,’ Hemig says. ‘The biggest problem now is that there are lots of moving parts. In the old days you had one contract and everything was in it. Now we are integrating all kinds of different power. It’s a whole different world. Steve Hollabaugh has pulled minor miracles out of his hat. It’s amazing what we have been able to do.’
It’s a time of change for energy use and the TDPUD. It appears as if there will be a major commitment to geothermal energy, coming from Nevada. Biomass energy is being looked into. Wind power from places as far away as Wyoming and Colorado will add to the mix, as will solar power, especially for small scale commercial uses. A commitment to conservation is on the rise.
‘If all comes to fruition we will have an enviable portfolio in 5 to 10 years and not have high costs, that is the goal,’ says Hemig. ‘We have come an amazing distance. It was a hard decision (to reject the 50 year coal contract) and the results have been better than I ever thought. So far, so good.’
Truckee Donner PUD Conservation and Rebate Programs
Listed below are some of the energy conservation programs, available to Truckee Donner PUD customers only. For information contact Scott Terrell at the TDPUD at 530-582-3931.
• Residential lighting: TDPUD will pay $2 towards the purchase of new CFL bulbs. In addition, the PUD has the goal to install one million CFLs in 10 years. They have given away tens of thousands of these more efficient lightbulbs already in the form of 12 packs.
• Commercial lighting: TDPUD will rebate a third of the cost of qualifying lighting fixtures to replace less efficient ones, up to $10,000 per customer.
• Appliance Rebate-If you buy a new Energy Star more energy-efficient appliance and replace an old one, the TDPUD will credit you: $100 for a Washer, $100 for a Dishwasher and $100 for a Refrigerator (recycling of the old refrigerator is required). The PUD will also pay $2 per gallon towards the purchase of a new water heater.
• The TDPUD will rebate $75 towards an Envelop Testing of residential properties, and then will pay 50 percent of the cost of recommended repairs to plug the leaks, up to $250.
• Windows: If you have single pane windows and heat primarily with electricity, TDPUD will pay up to $5 per square foot of window space towards the cost of new double or triple pane windows.
• Solar Rebate: This State mandated program in 2008 provided $5 a watt installed up to 3KW or $15,000. Commercial installers could receive up to $25,000. All 2008 money has been spent and much of the money for 2009 has already been reserved. In 2009 the rebate goes to $4.50 per watt with lower maximums as well.
• You can exchange your old holiday lights at the TDPUD for more efficient LED versions.
What about Sierra Pacific?
Many consumers reading this reside outside the service area of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District. Sierra Pacific also has programs designed to decrease energy use, including giving out free CFLs at Earth Day events. Some programs are designed just for Nevada customers and some just for California customers. SPP provides rebates for appliances and installation of solar systems, but in general the rebates are smaller (example: $30 for a washer at SPP, instead of $100 with TDPUD) and they are based on limited funds. Both solar and appliance rebate funding is already gone for this year. For information visit sierrapacificpower.com
