An additional 90 megawatts of solar power by Georgia Power, beyond what the GA PSC required last summer? With whose Army?
Kristi E. Swartz wrote for EnergyWire 16 May 2014, Georgia Power plan would install solar arrays on 3 Army bases,
Georgia Power and the Army jointly released plans to install large solar arrays at three military bases yesterday in what officials say could be a model for other states.
The three solar arrays are scheduled to start producing power in 2015 and will lead to the Army getting 18 percent of its electricity in Georgia from renewable fuels that are on-site.
The 90 total megawatts of solar electricity also will move the Army 9 percent closer to meeting federal goals for renewable energy.
Adding three 30 MW arrays would continue to boost Georgia’s rapidly growing solar output and would help the military meet its renewable energy goals to become sustainable and more secure.
The move also alleviates mounting political and public pressure on Georgia Power to remove roadblocks that some say have made it difficult for the military to meet its federal renewable energy goals.
OK, that’s all good stuff. However, I’m missing the part about SO is going beyond what GA PSC required Georgia Power to do:
“From the commission standpoint, it’s a joint venture between the Georgia Public Service Commission and the Georgia Power Co. It is a partnership,” PSC member Lauren “Bubba” McDonald said in an interview with EnergyWire. “Georgia will be the model state.”
At least a couple of state utility regulators have been working with Georgia Power for months on a program specifically to install solar at military bases. The utility will use a 90 MW self-build project that the Georgia Public Service Commission approved in 2007 to implement its plans.
So if that 90 MW was approved by GA PSC in 2007, how is it
beyond
the 525 MW GA PSC required of Georgia Power last summer?
Maybe Georgia Power and GA PSC won’t count that 90MW within the 525 MW.
This could confirm that interpretation:
McDonald said this program is an extension of his efforts last summer when he shepherded a proposal to have Georgia Power add 525 MW of solar to the grid as part of the utility’s long-term energy plan.
OK, that’s good. It’s still not enough: Georgia Power should be doubling its solar generation every year, not just adding 17% above what it’s required. But it’s some sort of acknowledgement that something needs to be done, and it is something Georgia Power is actually doing.
-jsq
