IU energy seminar series receives successful kick-off, seven speakers to follow during Themester

John Haselden (photo right) of Indianapolis Power and Light (IPL) spoke Sept. 15 as the first guest in The Grand Energy Challenge seminar series. Haselden is currently serving as the Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Indiana Renewable Energy Association. IPL is also a member of the association.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sept. 16, 2010

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- An impressive speaker series on climate change and energy, titled by organizers "The Grand Energy Challenge," received a successful launch Wednesday (Sept. 15) as part of Indiana University's fall 2010 Themester: "sustain•ability: Thriving on a Small Planet."

John Haselden, principal engineer in corporate affairs for Indianapolis Power and Light, spoke on the topic of "Moving to Sustainable Energy Supply," to an attentive and inquisitive group of students and community members, according to co-organizer Rebecca Barthelmie, an IU professor of atmospheric science. His talk was the first in a series of presentations that will include visits by a Patten lecturer, a leading state energy official, and researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Colorado School of Mines and Purdue University.

"John was an inspiring speaker who stayed behind to answer a lot of questions from students," Barthelmie said. "We've had to move the talks to larger venues to accommodate the much larger than expected audience. That is excellent, of course, and shows there is a lot of interest."

The series is being supported by the IU College of Arts and Sciences, a grant from Duke Energy Foundation, and the Multidisciplinary Ventures and Seminars Fund of the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs at IU Bloomington.

Co-organizers of the event with Barthelmie are Sara Pryor, also an atmospheric scientist in the IU Department of Geography, and John Rupp and Maria Mastalerz from the Indiana Geological Survey.

The series will include seven more presentations, listed here:

• "Coal's role in Indiana's future," by Purdue University's Tom Sparrow, Wednesday, Sept. 29, from 4-5 p.m. at the Department of Chemistry Building, room 001.
• "The role of international treaties in tackling climate change," by Griffith University's Jean Palutikof, from 7:30-8:30 p.m., Monday, Oct. 11, as part of the Patten Lecture Series. Fine Arts Building, room 015.
• "Low Impact Fossil Energy: Keystone to Sustainability" by Julio Friedmann, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, on Tuesday, Oct. 12, from 1-2 p.m., at the State Room East, Indiana Memorial Union.
• "Climate change adaptation strategies: a poor man's solution?" by Jean Palutikof, Griffith University, from 7:30-8:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 12, as part of the Patten Lecture Series. Fine Arts Building, room 015.
• "Renewable energy development in Indiana," by Travis Murphy of the Indiana Office of Energy Development, from 4-5 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 27, at Woodburn Hall, room 100.
• "Wind energy," by Matt Hendrickson, Horizon Wind Energy, from 4-5 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 10, at the Dogwood Room, Indiana Memorial Union.
• "The Global Energy Challenge," by Roel Snieder, Colorado School of Mines, from 4-5 p.m., Monday, Nov. 15, at the Geological Sciences Building, room 143.

For more information or to speak with Barthelmie or other organizers, please contact Steve Chaplin, University Communications, at 812-856-1896 or stjchap@indiana.edu.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Web Version
http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/15578.html

Join InREA for Webinar on IPL's New Renewable Energy Incentives Including FiT

Last summer, InREA brought you a webinar on Feed-in Tariffs (FiT) including information about Indianapolis Power and Light's proposal for a FiT that was part of their Demand Side Management (DSM) plan pending before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC). IPL's DSM plan was approved and now you can hear about the details and how to sign-up for these new renewable energy incentives.

See http://indianadg.wordpress.com/2010/04/01/final-ipl-feed-in-tariff-effective-march-30-2010/

If you can't join us on May 27th, we plan to provide web access to this presentation later.

The presenters for this webinar include:

John Haselden, Secretary of the InREA Board of Directors, is a Principal Engineer in Corporate Affairs at Indianapolis Power and Light Company (IPL). He works in the evaluation, planning and regulatory approval process of environmental compliance options, renewable resources and Demand Side Management (DSM) programs at IPL. He is the author of IPL’s Rate REP (Renewable Energy Production) feed-in tariff recently approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. He has over eighteen years of experience at IPL and has worked in engineering, planning, fuel supply and marketing and was also the Director of Engineering for a regional railroad before rejoining IPL in his present position. He graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. He also graduated from Indiana University with a Master of Business Administration. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Indiana.

Jake Allen is in Marketing and Program Management at Indianapolis Power & Light Company (IPL). During his tenure with IPL he has worked in numerous staff and management positions, including Engineer, Administrator of Rates, Director of Rates, and Manager, Energy Project Development. Since August 1997, he has been the individual who has primary responsibility for IPL’s Energy Efficiency or Demand Side Management (“DSM”) programs, including the development, research, implementation, planning, monitoring and evaluation of all DSM programs. He has been a witness in numerous Company proceedings before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. Jake holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Construction Engineering and Management from Purdue University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Indiana University. He is a registered Professional Engineer in the State of Indiana.

InREA Webinar: John Haselden and Jake Allen explain new Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL) Renewable Energy Programs


Join us for a Webinar on May 27

Space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/145063256
 
InREA Webinar: John Haselden and Jake Allen explain new Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL) Renewable Energy Programs

Join the first webinar by the Indiana Renewable Energy Association (InREA) using GoToWebinar on Thursday, May 27th from 10:00 to 11:00 am. John Haselden and Jake Allen with Indianapolis Power and Light (IPL) will describe and explain renewable energy incentives recently approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC).

These new renewable energy incentives include: 1) revised net metering tariff; 2) new Rate REP or Renewable Energy Production (aka Feed-in Tariff); and 3) incentives for small scale renewable energy projects.

The revised net metering tariff has been expanded to be available to all customers and the capacity limits have been increased from 10 kW to 50 kW.

IPL's Rate REP is:

• Available to all customers not on Net Metering Rider 9.
• Applicable to generating capacity of 50 kW (20 kW for solar PV) to 10 MW
• All production will be metered and purchased by IPL (not just net of use)
• IPL retains all environmental attributes (e.g. RECs) to be used for compliance with an RPS or sold to the market for the credit of all customers.
• Allows for multi-year contracting of production and pricing (allows for project financing)
• Standard pricing to be adjusted periodically using a 30-filing process and will take into account DSM incentives, tax credits and other influences so as to not create a windfall for developers.

A $2 per watt incentive available to IPL customers who install a small scale renewable energy project – capped at $4,000 per customer

This is a webinar you won't want to miss. We plan to record this webinar and make it available later so watch for more details.

Title: John Haselden and Jake Allen explain new IPL Renewable Energy Programs


Date: Thursday, May 27, 2010


Time: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM EDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP, 2003 Server or 2000

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4.11 (Tiger®) or newer

Please forward this information to others who you think might be interested but each person must register for this webinar brought to you by the Indiana Renewable Energy Association.

IPL Offers RATE REP for Renewable Energy Production


Available to any customer of IPL that operates within the Company’s service territory a Qualifying Renewable Energy Power Production Facility (REP-QF).

A REP-QF is for the production of electricity with capacity no less than 50 kW (20 kW for solar) and no greater than 10 MW. It shall be located at one site and is not the aggregation of more than one site each less than 50 kW (20 kW for solar) and which produces electric power through the use of 100% renewable resources or fuel. Customer must sell the total production of the Facility to IPL.

Such resources or fuels include:

• Solar photovoltaic cells and panels

• Wind

• Dedicated crops grown for energy production

• Organic waste biomass

• Biomass will be consistent with the State’s definition in IC 8-1-8.8-10

IPL RATE REP Purchase Rates

Solar

• No capacity payment

• Energy payments

o For facilities generating 20 kW to 100 kW: $0.24 per KWH

o For facilities generating more than 100 kW: $0.20 per KWH

Wind

• No capacity payment

• Energy payments

o For facilities generating 50 kW to 100 kW: $0.14 per KWH

o For facilities generating 100 kW to 1 MW: $0.10.5 per KWH

o For facilities generating more than 1 MW: $0.075 per KWH

Biomass

• Capacity payment: $6.18 per KW per month

• Energy payment $0.085 per KWH

House Committee Approves Energy Efficiency Buildings Bill

Today (01/13/10) the Indiana House Environmental Affairs Committee approved HB 1063 concerning energy efficient buildings by a vote of 8 to 3. The three members of the committee voting against the bill were Rep. David Wolkins (R-Winona Lake), Rep. Jack Lutz (R-Anderson and Rep. Sean Eberhart (R-Shelbyville). For more details on the bill and members of the committee see http://blog.indianarenew.org/2010/01/hb-1063-energy-efficient-buildings-bill.html



Since Rep. Matt Pierce (D-Bloomington) has introduced a similar bill the past two sessions that passed the House, there was a brief committee hearing and public testimony. After Rep. Pierce explained the bill, Miriam Dant representing the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns (IACT) testified against the bill. The remainder of the testimony was in support of the bill and included:



Donald Abel, American Institute of Architects Indiana Chapter (AIA Indiana);

Mark Flint, Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL);

Lynn Dennis, The Nature Conservancy (TNC);

Tim Maloney, Hoosier Environmental Council (HEC);

Kerwin Olson, Citizens Action Coalition (CAC); and

Glenn Pratt, Hoosier Chapter of the Sierra Club.



HB 1063 now moves to the floor for further action.

Indianapolis Power and Light (IPL) is a member of the Indiana Renewable Energy Association.

Proposed Indiana (Midwest) Feed-in Tariffs 2009

November 25, 2009

By Paul Gipe

This is a brief explanation of the proposed feed-in tariffs provided to the Indiana Renewable Energy Association and Representative Matt Pierce.

The tariffs suggested are applicable throughout the Midwest and not solely to Indiana.

The tariffs, or prices paid for renewable generation per kilowatt-hour, are based on my professional judgment of current best practice worldwide and best practice specifically in North America.

In large part the tariffs are based on those implemented October 1, 2009 in Ontario, Canada. The Ontario Power Authority derived a system of tariffs for renewable energy following the most rigorous and, equally as important, the most transparent price-setting process yet conducted in North America. The Ontario tariffs were converted to US dollars.

Because of lucrative federal subsidies in the US, there are two tariff tracks: one without federal subsidies, and one with the subsidies.

Two Tracks (with & without Federal Tax Credits)
There are two tracks because not every potential generator can fully use the federal tax credits. If the program is to be equitable, that is, if the program is to provide equal opportunity to all Indiana citizens, it must not be limited to only those with substantial federal taxes. Thus, even those who do not have substantial federal tax liability can take advantage of the program by using the tariffs.

While it would be technically more correct to run a full financial model taking into account the discounted effects of the federal subsidies, this was determined to be unnecessary. Instead, the proposed Indiana tariffs derived from Ontario's current rates were simply reduced 30 percent, representing the equivalent benefit of the federal tax credits.

Wind Energy
Wind energy is a special case and was treated separately and in much more detail. There are four classes of wind energy tariffs: two tariff classes for small wind turbines, an offshore class, and a tariff class for onshore, commercial-scale wind turbines.



Small Turbines
Tariffs for small wind turbines are divided by the area swept by the wind turbine's rotor. This measure allows inclusion of both conventional horizontal-axis wind turbines as well as novel vertical-axis wind turbines.

The smallest class is representative of household-size wind turbines. These are currently more expensive and less productive than commercial-scale turbines and, consequently, the tariff needed is much greater. The tariff proposed for household-size wind turbines is comparable to that in several European countries and to that proposed in Great Britain.

The second small turbine class is for wind turbines considered suitable for small businesses. With the federal tax credit, the tariff proposed is similar to that proposed by Indianapolis Power & Light in its filing with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) for wind turbines less than 100 kW in capacity.


Commercial-Scale Turbines Onshore
The price necessary for profitable operation of commercial-scale wind turbines is highly dependent upon the wind resource and the resulting productivity of the wind turbine. To spread economic opportunity to a greater percentage of Hoosier farmers, rural landowners, and small businesses it is necessary to offer a range of tariffs to reflect the different wind resources available.

When a single wind energy tariff is used for commercial-scale wind turbines, some generators will be overpaid and others underpaid. Both to avoid overpayment at windier sites and to enable profitable wind development at less windy sites it's necessary to calculate a range of tariffs.

There are two techniques currently in use to accomplish this task: the German system, and the French system. Both systems use a trial period of five to ten years. All turbines are paid the same price during the trial period. After the trial period, the tariff payment changes, reflecting the site's productivity. The German system (it is also used in Switzerland) is more unwieldy than the French system and less adaptable to North America.

The French system bases the post-trial tariff on a measure of the wind turbine's productivity.

The proposed Indiana tariffs are similar to those proposed in Ontario by the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association. They have been specifically adapted to the North American wind resource and costs.

The proposed Indiana tariffs are derived from the Profitability Index Method developed by Bernard Chabot for the French equivalent of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

This method incorporates average installed costs, annual expenses, inflation, the cost of capital, and so on. Most importantly, this method enables simple recalculation of the tariff needed as the wind resource and turbine productivity vary.

The two most important parameters are the installed cost relative to the area swept by the wind turbine rotor. In this case, the installed cost is approximately $2,400/kW for a 2 MW wind turbine with a 90 meter diameter rotor.

The base productivity is set at a minimum average annual specific yield of 650 kWh/m2/yr. This yield is equivalent to a wind resource of 5.5 m/s (12.3 mph) at hub height. The calculation results in a tariff of $0.14/kWh without tax credits and $0.098/kWh with the federal tax credits.

The base tariff is paid for the first five years to all turbines installed under the program. Turbines with a productivity of 650 kWh/m2/yr or less will be paid the base tariff for the full 20 years.

At the end of the first five years, the yield for each year is determined. The year with highest yield and the year with the lowest yield are discarded. The productivity of the turbine is calculated from the yield of the remaining three years.

The profitability index is limited to 0.55 at an annual yield of 1,200 kWh/m2/yr. This eliminates overpayment for development at windy sites where the wind resource is equivalent to 7.4 m/s (16.6 mph) at hub height. The calculation results in a tariff for years 6 through 20 of $0.084/kWh without tax credit, and $0.059/kWh with federal tax credits.

Note that because there are two tariffs (for years 1-5, and for years 6-20), the average or equivalent tariff is somewhat more than the second period tariff. Thus, at a site with an average yield of 1,200 kWh/m2/yr, the average or equivalent 20-year tariff is $0.104/kWh without tax credits and $0.073/kWh with federal tax credits. The latter equivalent tariff is nearly identical with that proposed by Indianapolis Power & Light to the IURC for wind turbines larger than 1 MW of $0.075/kWh.

This article brought to you by the Indiana Renewable Energy Association. For more information, please visit www.indianarenew.org.