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www.CTGreenGuide.com SUMMER 2015 • Connecticut Green Guide 33 Home-Grown Power Keep renewable energy dollars in CT By Jon Gordon O n Feb. 25, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island have initiated a coordinated process that will lead to a three-state request for proposals (RFP) for clean energy resources. The governor in his press re- lease stated the following: "By working together with neighboring states we can make the most efficient use of our resources to attract new clean energy projects at the lowest possible cost for rate- payers while advancing our interests in reducing emissions of greenhouse gases," said Governor Malloy. "The joint pro- curement process opens the possibility of procuring large- scale projects and transmission to deliver clean energy on a scale that no single state could secure on its own." The three states took the first step in the procure- ment process by releasing a draft RFP, and the states will issue the final RFP this spring. The RFP will seek bids on new Class I Renewable Energy projects — which include wind, solar, small hydro, biomass, and fuel cells — of at least 20 megawatts and large-scale hydro power projects. The joint RFP with neighboring states seeking to work together cooperatively is a groundbreaking ap- proach for New England energy policy. While this new approach offers the possibility of benefits to ratepayers, depending on how it is imple- mented it may also have unintended consequences for the burgeoning marketplace for smaller scale distrib- uted renewable energy projects in Connecticut. Connecticut has a legislatively mandated goal that 20 percent Connecticut's electric supply be generated from Class I renewable generation resources by 2020. The goal for 2015 is 12.5 percent, and Connecticut is already pro- curing renewable power from out of state to find enough renewable supply to achieve the current goal. The three- state RFP seeks to facilitate even more purchases for remote, out-of-state renewable energy supply. In 2013, when Connecticut issued its last large- scale RFP for renewable energy, it ultimately awarded a contract to EDP Renewables, a subsidiary of the Madrid, Spain-based conglomerate EDP Renováveis, which is developing a 250 megawatt wind farm to be located in Aroostook County, Maine. It's estimated that as much as $1 billion of Connecticut ratepayer money may go to the Spanish company for the Maine-based wind power over the life of the contract. Malloy's new multi-state RFP seems to further the out-of-state renewable energy purchasing strategy by allowing the contract to include the cost of transmission infrastructure to bring remote renewable resources to Connecticut, such as existing large-scale hydro power from Canada, which Connecti- cut policymakers have discussed as a viable means of achieving Connecticut's 20 percent by 2020 goal. Connecticut policymakers should focus first on en- couraging every possible means to keep ratepayer dol- lars for renewable energy in Connecticut and reap the economic development and job benefits that go with a thriving, in-state renewable energy economy. Jon Gordon is an independent energy policy consultant and a 28-year veteran of the energy industry, working on issues ranging from power markets to regulation to legislative affairs. Gordon also serves on the Board of REEBA (Renewable Energy and Efficiency Business Association).