Electric Co-op Today

NRECA CEO Glenn English told a national conference that the United States cannot fulfill its ambitions for renewable energy production and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions unless policymakers get serious about transmission issues.

NRECA CEO Glenn English addresses a renewable energy conference, with Sonya Baskerville of the Bonneville Power Administration. (Photo By: Steven Johnson)

“There are lots of good ideas, but a shortage of good plans,” English said June 30 at the National 25x’25 Summit in Arlington, Va. “Transmission is a huge impediment, and one that might prohibit reaching the goals that have been laid out for renewable energy.”

A national transmission initiative will cost tens of billions of dollars and is certain to arouse homeowners, local politicians and environmental interests who oppose high-voltage projects in their backyards, English said.

“There has to be a political decision in this country on transmission,” he said. “Until that decision is made, we cannot fulfill the promise of renewable energy.”

The conference was sponsored by 25x’25 coalition, which advocates production of a quarter of U.S. energy needs from farms, forests and ranches by 2025.

English, who spoke at a forum on “Energy Efficiency and the Growing Role of Electricity,” is a member of the 25x’25 steering committee and is the only utility representative on the committee.

He told conference participants that transmission represents a particular challenge for utilities because some of the most fertile grounds for wind and solar power are located far from population centers that need the electricity.

Citing several recent studies, English noted that an estimated 10,000 miles of extra high-voltage transmission will be needed in the eastern power grid to accommodate 5 percent renewable energy, primarily wind. That could cost $50 billion, according to some estimates.

To reach a 20 percent renewable target, a number that some states have written into law as part of a renewable electricity requirement, could mean 15,000 miles of new transmission, he said.

Tags: Energy and Environment, Renewable Energy, Renewable Portfolio Standards, Transmission and Distribution