July 15, 2008

Fort Worth Star-Telegram
PUC Urged to Approve Wind-Power Proposal

By Jay Root

That was the pitch Monday from a broad coalition of lawmakers and renewable energy enthusiasts who want state regulators to approve a multibillion-dollar infrastructure upgrade — to be financed by Texas energy consumers — that will carry wind power from West Texas and the Panhandle to the major urban areas.

The Public Utility Commission is scheduled to debate the extensive transmission-line proposal Thursday in Austin, but the deal probably won’t be completed until mid-August.

"The capacity for wind generation in West and North Texas is so great that we could position ourselves in Texas to be the world leader in wind and renewable energy in the next 100 years just as we were the world leader in oil and gas for the last 100 years," said state Rep. Mark Strama, D-Austin.

Strama and other Democratic elected officials held a news conference to urge the PUC to adopt the boldest, and most expensive, of several state proposals for building transmission lines.

A group of Republican leaders, including state Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, also touted the benefits of building the transmission lines but stopped short of supporting any specific proposal. They also stressed the need for coal, nuclear, natural gas and other conventional energy sources to meet the state’s demand for electricity.

"There’s limits to how much you can rely on wind, but we’ve got a long way to go on that . . . we need a big pipeline to bring that power primarily to the D-FW area but also to other areas of Texas," said King, chairman of the House Regulated Industries Committee. "Wind isn’t the answer, but it is a big part of the answer."

Texas leads the nation in wind energy with a capacity of more than 5,500 megawatts, enough to generate power for more than 1 million homes. But the state’s wind farms are concentrated in West Texas and the Panhandle, far from major population centers.

How much to spend on transmission lines is the rub. The PUC will consider proposals ranging from $3 billion to $6.4 billion. The more spent, the more wind power can be carried over the lines. Environmentalists and renewable-energy promoters in the Legislature are urging the PUC to adopt the boldest and most expensive proposal, saying the investment will pay off over time as the costs of traditional fuels like natural gas soar.

"We are facing our generation’s greatest challenge. We will not solve it with half measures," said state Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, who’s urging the PUC to adopt the $6.4 billion plan.

But industrial electricity users, hospitals and other large energy consumers have expressed concerns about the increase in costs that will be passed along to ratepayers. The transmission lines will be built by the power companies but they will be allowed to recoup their investments by increasing rates. For the average homeowner, it would amount to about $2.50 to $5 extra per month, preliminary estimates show.

For a large manufacturer, however, the increase could amount to more than $1 million a year, according to Tony Bennett, chairman of the Texas Association of Manufacturers. Bennett favors a more modest approach costing about $3.8 billion.