ERMUSR EDUCATION 07-15-2008Elk River
Municipal, Utilities
13069 Orono Parkway • P.O. Box 430
Elk River, MN 55330-0430
July 10, 2008
Memo to File
From: Bryan Adams
Subject: Notes from June 2008 APPA National Conference in New Orleans, LA.
Mark Crisson, CEO APPA
Mark discussed the four major challenges facing electric utilities.
1) Rising costs — strategies to off -set
a) More efficiency
b) More information thru APPA web -site
c) Customer education
d) Improve codes & standards
e) Other alliances with Department of Energy
2) Climate change — initiate task force
3) RTO rates not competitive
4) Workforce issues — 40% retiring in 5 years
Phone: 763.441.2020
Fax: 763.441.8099
Gary Langer, Director of Polling ABC News
He discussed surveys and how they can be accurate or very inaccurate depending on how questions are
asked — agree -disagree question should not be used. Tendency is for people to agree. Internet has
changed opinion due to all of the available data which may be true or inaccurate. Big issue now is:
1) Economy and gas prices
2) Iraqis in 2nd place
Future of Fuels by R.W. Beck and Catherine Elder
As natural gas prices increase, reserves have increased due to higher price technologies to retrieve gas
becoming cost effective. Natural gas consumption has stayed flat last 15 years at approximately 21
TCF/year. As electric generation uses more gas, industry is using less. 20% of United States electric
generation comes from methane.
She was not concerned about the finite quantity of gas resources which seemed odd. She discussed
natural gas use, nuclear, coal gasification and coal with and without CCS.
Power to Reduce CO? by Revis James of EPRI
The major GHG (greenhouse gases) are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide. The
2007 electric consumption was 3800 TWH/year with a reference point of New York City at 89
TWH/year with a 30% growth by 2030. He showed the updated EPRI prism analysis from last year's
presentation. Emission reduction will be expensive with many solutions including more efficiency,
more renewable, smart distribution grids, energy storage, advanced light water reactors, carbon capture
and storage (CCS). Much more R & D dollars needed.
Buildina the Sustainable Communities in the Future
Robert Daigle, a land developer in Lafayette, LA talked about his development, where one can live,
shop and work in the development. Kitty Piecy the Mayor of Eugene, OR, discussed what her
community is doing such as electric mass transit, all city building silver lead certified and solar energy
programs.
Fred Krupp of Environmental Defense Fund talked about climate change. Problem is to solve global
warming issues at affordable costs. America's ingenuity and creativity is paramount. Ideas such as
geothermal in Alaska, solar energy with use of silica filter point, ethanol not from corn but from plant
waste, cellulous, sugar, starch used as fuel by alternative DNA. Electric transmission infrastructure
needs to be enhanced. Improve our clean coal technologies with sulfur and CO2 removal.
USA is still the largest CO2 imitator but China becoming a problem. If USA shows leadership in this
issue, China will follow.
Burning rain forests causes 20% GHG emissions L -W bill (cap and trade federal initiative) will cost
USA 1% of its economy. Krupp is in favor of performance standards to reduce emissions and let
industry determine how to do it.
Wind Generation in Texas
Three presenters talked about wind energy in Texas. Wind resource is far away from load centers.
Issues are:
1) Get power to market. Transmission system must be expanded. 20% wind energy resource is
achievable.
2) Wind is intermittent, generation reserve requirements must be increased as % wind increase
(Mapp requirement is 15% reserve with 5% always spinning).
3) It is an uncontrolled resource and only provides energy and not capacity.
4) Better wind forecasting is a must.
5) RTO makes dealing with wind energy more difficult and gaming the system more prevalent.
Risk management becoming more important.
Are Your Energy Efficiency Programs As Good As You Think by Carol Mulholland
Utilities should continually evaluate the energy efficiency programs. Evaluate how programs are
presented and marketed to the public, how public accepts and uses programs and are the programs
achieving the desired goals. Technology and products have a life span and is it time to change.
Evaluate market transformation such as current technology, price, availability, warranties, education,
poor installation and type of technical support.