Today the Sierra Club, Environmental Law and Policy Center, and Iowa Environmental Council filed joint testimony in MidAmerican’s Wind PRIME docket before the Iowa Utilities Board. MidAmerican’s Wind PRIME project, which would add 2,042 MW of wind and 50 MW of solar, relies on the company’s plans to continue operating 5 large coal-burning power plants in Iowa. These coal plants make MidAmerican the single largest carbon polluter in the state.
The testimony includes independent technical modeling analysis of MidAmerican’s generating fleet performed by Synapse Energy Economics and Energy Futures Group on behalf of the environmental groups. This analysis shows a balanced, reliable portfolio that adds a mix of battery storage, solar, and some wind while retiring all of MidAmerican’s Iowa coal plants by 2035 and delivers $120 million in cost savings relative to MidAmericans’s current plan, which focuses almost exclusively on new wind resources and continued coal burning. The alternative portfolio would also provide more around-the-clock clean energy than MidAmerican’s proposed Wind PRIME portfolio. Replacing coal plants with cost-effective, clean generation and complementary storage alternatives avoids substantial operation and maintenance costs and the additional capital investments that would be required to maintain MidAmerican’s aging coal fleet. In total, this plan would save 25 million tons of carbon compared to MidAmerican’s plan, the equivalent of taking more than 5 million cars off the road (more than all the cars in Iowa).
Resource diversity is critical to a reliable system going forward and a key difference between the Synapse/EFG modeling findings and MidAmerican’s plan to run a wind-coal system. “Diversified clean energy, coupled with storage and a robust transmission system, can provide all of our energy needs in Iowa and at a lower cost,” said Kerri Johannsen, Energy Program Director with the Iowa Environmental Council. “The status quo has led to escalating uncertainty around extreme weather, high fuel costs, and fears of energy shortages. This is not an acceptable future. MidAmerican must plan and invest now in a truly 100% clean system that works reliably and cost-effectively for Iowans. To ensure this transition delivers reliable and affordable electricity, MidAmerican needs to take steps now to study upgrades to the transmission system and to start development of adequate battery storage and solar.”
MidAmerican did not use any quantitative modeling to choose the Wind PRIME mix, but instead selected a resource mix based on the goals of maximizing energy market revenues and federal tax credits. Devi Glick of Synapse stated in her testimony that this approach “might be reasonable for a merchant utility, but it is not a reasonable approach for a rate-regulated utility with captive ratepayers.” Ms. Glick continued, “MidAmerican cites customers’ desire for affordable and reliable carbon free electricity to support the Wind PRIME project. But by assessing the project’s value based on energy generation and production tax credit revenues, MidAmerican is not positioning the utility to create a reliable, carbon-free electricity system. The Company is creating a wind-heavy energy system that is dependent on coal for meeting capacity needs, rather than integrating more solar and battery storage resources that exhibit complementary output patterns.” She adds, “Approving Wind PRIME as-is creates a wind-coal system that does not provide 100 percent clean energy and instead keeps five coal units running for 20 years or more, despite their advanced age, high costs, poor suitability for a high-renewable grid, and the presence of cheaper alternatives.”
The new analysis conducted by Synapse and Energy Futures Groups used utility industry best practices to assess whether the Wind PRIME project is the right set of resource additions to help the utility transition away from its heavy reliance on expensive and polluting coal combustion. The experts used a proven modeling platform that has been adopted in 17 states to identify reliable low cost electricity portfolios. The analysis found that three of MidAmerican’s coal plants -- Louisa, Neal 3, and Ottumwa -- are uneconomic and should be retired as soon as feasible. The plan additionally includes retiring the remainder of the coal plants by 2035 and leverages the benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act to add 1,600 MW of battery storage by 2030 and 3,700 MW of solar by 2035. The plan also supports adding MidAmerican’s proposed 50 MW solar project and approximately a third of MidAmerican’s proposed wind additions.
“This groundbreaking analysis shows that Iowa doesn’t have to continue to burn coal to reliably and affordably meet electricity needs. The Inflation Reduction Act enables us to create thousands of family-sustaining clean energy jobs while heading off the worst impacts of the climate crisis in Iowa -- but only if we act now. MidAmerican knows that its coal plants are a drain for Iowa customers and time is ticking for this expensive, dirty generation,” said the Sierra Club’s Iowa Beyond Coal Campaign Representative Katie Rock, “Iowa coal plant communities and workers deserve to know what the plan is. MidAmerican needs to commit to a transparent planning process that prioritizes a just transition away from burning coal.”
The study’s findings are consistent with national trends, as utilities around the country are finding that coal plants cannot compete with low-cost, clean renewable energy sources, and that clean energy and storage can make the electric grid more reliable. Provisions beyond the expanded and extended production tax credits for wind in the Inflation Reduction Act provide an opportunity for a more balanced renewable energy portfolio that includes a transition from coal power. MidAmerican should not delay to take advantage of investment tax credits for wind and financing programs to fund a just transition from coal provided in the Inflation Reduction Act.
“Planning to eliminate these expensive, dirty sources of generation and replacing them with renewables made sense even before the benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act were available,” said Josh Mandelbaum, senior attorney with Environmental Law & Policy Center. “It is critical that MidAmerican plan for a clean energy transition in a transparent manner using industry best practices before investing billions of dollars of Iowans’ hard-earned money.”
“With far healthier alternatives to energy generation than coal, it is simply not conscionable to burden our children’s air with pollution from coal plants,” says Karin Stein of Moms Clean Air Force, “In Iowa, the proportion of Latinos and other people of color in neighborhoods near Mid American’s remaining coal plants is significant, so producing energy from coal is also an environmental justice problem. With Iowa’s asthma rates now exceeding the national average, we must move away from coal energy quickly to eliminate coal as a contributor to both poor health and the global climate crisis. Moms demand that MidAmerican review Wind PRIME to increase renewable investment and close down its remaining, harmful coal plants.”
The Utilities Board has scheduled a hearing on the Wind PRIME proposal for February 2023.
Photo is George Neal North, taken by Emma Colman.