Take a quick tour of the
alternative energy sources
currently being utilized
by Indiana's electric
cooperatives.  Click on
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The Issue

Electric cooperatives, the electric utility industry, and consumers--all of us--are facing a significant challenge in the next decade.  Rising demand for power has virtually exhausted the surplus electric generation built in the late 1970s and early 1980s.  Experts forecast that economic growth will drive a 30 percent increase in demand by 2030.

The Challenge

The Message

We are asking consumers to contact their elected officials to ensure that new public policy is balanced with the need for affordable electricity.  Indiana's electric cooperatives are committed to providing affordable and reliable power in an environmentally responsible fashion.

Achieving a balanced energy plan will require a significant and sustained effort on the part of the Congress beginning next year either by vastly expanding existing programs or by passing new legislation in areas such as the following:

Efficiency: Efficiency and conservation programs should be given a high priority in addressing the projected growth in electricity demand.  Congress must understand that great gains can be made in this area through better appliance and building standards as well as by helping people who simply cannot afford to purchase adequate insulation or more efficient appliances. Electric cooperatives have many consumer members who live in mobile and manufactured homes or in homes with little insulation. A program that would provide households even $500 dollars of direct assistance in this area would help to reduce the anticipated growth in power demand and to keep electric bills affordable.

Renewable Energy: Electric cooperatives have already made major new renewable resource commitments and have created a National Renewable Cooperative Organization that gives all cooperatives a way to invest in cost-effective, utility-scale renewable projects, no matter where they are located in the nation. It is likely that much of this power in the foreseeable future will come from wind resources in the Great Plains, with production far exceeding what can be used locally. High voltage transmission capacity to carry renewable energy to large population areas is insufficient today to meet the increased production; therefore, renewable transmission corridors will be needed soon if the nation expects to maximize its renewable production potential. Congress needs to adopt new policies that enable such corridors to be built in a cost-effective and timely manner. In addition, the federal hydropower program should be upgraded.   A DOE report concluded that 2500 MW of new generation could be produced through the rehabilitation of federal facilities.

Nuclear Power: New nuclear power plants are essential to reducing carbon emissions while meeting the nation's power needs in the next decade, and they are needed now. The Electric Power Research Institute estimates four new plants will need to come on line each year from 2015 to 2020 if nuclear power is to contribute to reducing carbon emissions to 1990 levels by 2030. Today it can take 10 years to work through the process from permitting to full operation. There are several filings for new plants currently before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Following today's procedures, none will be operational until 2017 at the earliest.  The federal government must become seriously engaged in accelerating the deployment of new nuclear units.

Carbon Capture and Storage: Technology is the key to retaining our nation's diverse menu of electric generation fuel options.  We are entering, between now and sometime after 2020 when carbon capture and storage is readily available, a period of potentially severe capacity and price stress, including volatility in the natural gas market.  The sooner carbon capture and storage technology is available for coal-based power plants, the sooner we will pass this dangerous period. Congress can speed the arrival of that day by substantially increasing funding for this technology and other low-carbon technology solutions to $2 billion per year.

We recognize that Congress is focused on the effects of climate change 50 to 100 years from now. We also believe that the focus of attention of elected officials and the public must be on the electric power crisis which will continue over the next decade. We can avoid much consumer hardship by taking action now.