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Wednesday, May 4, 2011
News / Biz N.C.'s energy policy needs an update
Posted By Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman on Wed, May 4, 2011 at 9:05 AM
The state of North Carolina requires energy companies, like Charlotte's Duke Energy, to do a lot of things — such as provide electricity to everyone in a certain geographic area, offer low prices, include a certain percentage of renewable energy in their portfolio, avoid pollution, etc.
I don't think anyone will argue that such companies are required to adhere to a lot of regulations, nor will anyone argue that their service is an invaluable one ... as is their need to provide their service without harming the land or people where they operate. All of the regulations, however, could use a regular review so they can be updated as times change.
The regulation I'm going to pick on today is one that the Raleigh News & Observer picked on in an editorial in today's paper: "Fair limit on solar sales?"
It's in reaction to a story its sister paper, The Charlotte Observer, published over the weekend: "Solar bill seeks N.C. policy shift."
Here's the summation: Solar companies feel like they won't be able to compete in a state where a giant energy company — Duke Energy, which is in the process of acquiring the state's other energy giant, Progress Energy — holds the majority of the cards.
While I agree with the News & Observer in that the state shouldn't favor regulations that will benefit one company or industry over another, I assert that current regulations already do just that. (I also disagree with this statement: "... solar is a limited resource ..." No, it's not. Solar fields are limited, in large part because of wishy-washy regulations and funding that comes and goes with the political winds.)
Listen, this is a capitalistic society. We value competition. We value a business person's ability to start with an idea and turn it into something huge. (Example: Duke Energy, which got its start on the Catawba River.) We've even got people who believe in the myth of the free market. (It's a myth because our government will never be able to keep its hands out of the market.)
Ask yourselves: Why are regulations stacked in direct opposition to competition?
It's time for the state to re-evaluate it's idea of fairness when it comes to the renewable energy industry, especially if this state is supposed to be a leader in it, and to remind itself that competition drives innovation.
It's also time to revisit those "decades-old" regulations, as the News & Observer calls them, and bring them up to date ... especially in a time when our local energy giant is suspending solar projects and looking to burn trees and trash instead. (Though those involved hesitate to admit it publicly, it's highly likely that Duke Energy will buy ReVenture's trash-generated electricity, for which the state passed a special law granting it three times the renewable energy credits as other forms of renewable energy.)
If the state can pass special regulations for new energy projects, it can certainly take the time to revamp regulations it has passed for old energy projects. Doing so will offer energy consumers something they aren't used to in this state: Choices.
Here's the background on the solar industry's push for a level playing field from the Observer:
Green energy advocates are pushing for a change in state law to allow solar power producers to sell electricity directly to homeowners and businesses.Such a change would upend North Carolina's longstanding energy policy, which currently doesn't let consumers choose their electricity provider. The proposal is opposed by the politically powerful electric utilities in the state that don't want to lose customers and sales revenue.
Customers today can buy electricity only from the power supplier in their region - which for most people in the state means Duke Energy, Progress Energy, rural electric cooperatives or municipal power agencies.
Solar power installations can sell electricity they generate but only to those power suppliers, which in turn resell the electricity to homeowners and businesses.
But solar power companies say they could tap into a potentially bigger market if they were also allowed to sell electricity directly to customers, as is allowed in at least 19 other states.
Read the rest of this story, by John Murawski, here.
Also, check this out: Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (NC)
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