Energy Exchange

Selected tag(s): SB310

Fact: Clean Energy is Working in Ohio

By Dick Munson / Published: May 19, 2014

windpowerohioChris Prandoni certainly is welcome to his own opinions, but not his own facts. As the Director of Energy and Environmental Policy at Americans for Tax Reform, Prandoni may favor coal-fired power plants and dislike energy efficiency and renewables, but there’s no doubt Ohio’s clean energy standards are saving consumers money and bringing huge investments into the state.

Prandoni supports S.B. 310, which has already passed the Ohio Senate and is expected to enter the House within the next week, and promises to kill the state’s renewable portfolio standards (RPS) and energy efficiency directives. If Prandoni has his way, and as he points out in his misinformed Forbes op-ed, Ohio would be the first state in the nation to “pare back” its clean energy mandates, but this is not something Ohioans should be proud of. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, Ohio, Renewable Energy, Utility Business Models / Tagged | Read 1 Response

Roberto Rocks the House (and the Senate Too): Why Protecting Ohio’s Clean Energy Standards is Imperative

By John Finnigan / Published: April 10, 2014
Source: American Insurance Association

Source: American Insurance Association Flickr

Cheryl Roberto, Associate Vice President and leader of EDF’s Clean Energy Program, recently testified before the Ohio Senate Public Utilities Committee against S.B. 310, which would freeze Ohio’s energy efficiency and renewable energy standards at current levels. Sen. William Seitz, the Committee Chair, described her testimony as “passionate,” “very persuasive” and “thought provoking.”

Roberto described how the electric grid has changed. The old model, in effect for the past hundred years, relies on one-way power flows from large, centralized utility power plants, with limited customer service options and limited information available to customers on their energy usage. The new model involves two-way power flows between the utility and customers who own small, on-site solar, wind, and combined heat and power units. Customers receive detailed, real-time energy usage and price information. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, Grid Modernization, Ohio, Renewable Energy, Utility Business Models / Tagged | Read 5 Responses

Ohio’s Clean Energy Standards Under Attack Again by ALEC

By Dick Munson / Published: April 7, 2014
Source: Dustin M. Ramsey

Source: Dustin M. Ramsey

Ohio’s clean energy agenda has taken many hits in the past, particularly from the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a front group and model bill factory for many corporate interests including oil, gas, and coal. Last year, ALEC led an unsuccessful effort to repeal the state’s clean energy standard. The introduction of Ohio’s Senate Bill 310 is the group’s most recent attempt to prevent Ohioans from continuing to enjoy the many benefits of new, clean energy technologies, reasonable electricity rates, and a healthy environment.

Hearings began last week on SB 310, which would freeze any additional energy efficiency or renewable energy mandates in Ohio after 2014. This is an amendment to the landmark 2008 legislation in Ohio requiring the state to acquire 12.5percent of its energy portfolio from renewables and to reduce energy consumption by 22 percent through energy efficiency measures by 2025. If adopted, this freeze would stymie Ohio from reaching its full clean energy potential, attaining instead only about one-tenth of its 2025 renewables goal and one-fifth of its energy efficiency target. Read More »

Posted in Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency, Ohio, Renewable Energy / Also tagged | Read 6 Responses