Worcester Business Journal

10 Worcester Business Journal • May 9, 2016 www.wbjournal.com the new plants will use natural gas, and the remaining third will generate power through wind and small-scale solar. Since 2013, the region's forward capacity market has added 4,700 mega- watts of new capacity, according to ISO New England. The state is headed in the right direc- tion towards its obligations set forth in the Global Warming Solutions Act, Dolan said. Renewable portfolio stan- dards keep Massachusetts in line with its green goals, and carbon emissions have significantly declined. Judy Chang, an energy industry ana- lyst at the Brattle Group in Cambridge, said it's important to make sure the state has a variety of fuel suppliers. "We should make sure that there are enough competitive forces so we don't lock in the ratepayers," she said. The state legislature, for its part, is close to finalizing its own ideas on what Massachusetts' energy future should look like. In a speech to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce in early March, Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo said the bill will include a procurement process to enhance the role of hydropower and other renewables in- state, and encourage development of offshore wind. Hydro and wind are a natural pair, he said. "When partnered with wind resourc- es, hydropower can provide energy when the wind doesn't blow. The two are complementary," DeLeo told the Boston chamber. Natural gas dependence Although hydro and wind seem to be the most popular fuels at the state level, most of Massachusetts' energy supply comes from natural gas, a fossil fuel which was responsible for generating close to 50 percent of the region's elec- tricity last year. That is a big jump from the year 2000, when it supplied just 15 percent. The fuel's popularity has increased due to its declining prices and its cleaner burning than coal and oil. ISO New England's 2016 Regional in Plymouth, the state's only nuclear plant, is also scheduled to close in 2019. State officials are hoping renewable energy sources, natural gas and the increased infrastructure that comes with them will replace retiring plants. Gov. Charlie Baker filed legislation last year to expand hydropower's influence in Massachusetts, and the legislature will likely debate a comprehensive energy bill, including proposals for both hydro and wind power, at some point this year. Central Massachusetts businesses that are big consumers of energy – such as manufacturers – who pay some of the highest prices in the country for their power, are hoping the state will increase energy transmission to keep costs low. Judith Judson, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, said the state will rely on a "combo platter" of fuels going forward, including making energy storage solu- tions part of the discussion. "Our strategy is to develop a balanced and diverse portfolio," Judson said. Hydro & wind Last year, Baker filed legislation aimed at meeting the state's obligations under the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2008, which requires greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced to 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and to 80 per- cent by 2050. When the first Climate Change Plan was adopted in 2010, it assumed that 5.3 percent of that 25 per- cent reduction would be met through hydropower. Since that power hasn't yet been procured, the commonwealth isn't on track to meeting its goal, according to the bill. The bill would require electric distri- bution companies to solicit proposals for long-term contracts for hydropower, bringing between 1,200 and 2,400 mega- watts of hydroelectric power to Massachusetts. In response to Baker's bill, former state environmental affairs secretary Sue Tierney produced a report for the New England Power Generators Association – which represents the region's power plant owners – saying adopting the bill's provisions would cost ratepayers an extra $777 million annually. Another study from Power Advisory LLC for the Massachusetts Clean Energy Partnership said large-scale hydro and wind will save consumers $171 million a year. Dan Dolan, president of the New England Power Generators Association, said hydro deserves presence in the mar- ketplace, but it shouldn't receive any sort of special treatment written into the law. That could lead to dangerous monopo- lies and high prices for consumers. The market is designed to respond to system retirements and incentivize new plants to replace them, he said. "You're insulating a third of the mar- ket from competition and giving con- tracts to these single entities without them having to compete," Dolan said. Even though about 10,000 megawatts could potentially retire over the next four years, Dolan said 5,000 new mega- watts are either in development or pro- posed. He cited new natural gas plants in Salem, Sandwich and Medway and new potential developments in Rhode Island and Connecticut. About two-thirds of >> Continued from Page 1 Mass. banking on natural gas, renewables to replace retiring plants Hydro-Quebec owns 25 large resevoirs in eastern Canada, which generate 170 billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually. ANP-Bellingham Energy Project Bellingham GDF Suez Energy Marketing NA, Inc. 615 Natural Gas ANP-Blackstone Energy Project Blackstone GDF Suez Energy Marketing NA, Inc. 615 Natural Gas Millenium Charlton Consolidated Edison Energy, Inc. 405.5 Natural Gas Bellingham Cogeneration Facility Bellingham NextEra Energy Power Marketing, LLC 340.2 Natural Gas Milford Power LP Milford GDF Suez Energy Marketing NA, Inc. 171 Natural Gas Exelon Medway LLC Medway Exelon Generation Company, LLC 172.5 Oil Wheelabrator Millbury Millbury New England Power Company 40.9 Biomass Exelon Framingham LLC Framingham Exelon Generation Company, LLC 54.3 Oil Pinetree Power Fitchburg Inc. Fitchburg GDF Suez Energy Marketing NA, Inc. 17.5 Biomass Cherry Street Hudson Hudson Light & Power Department 16.8 Oil Shrewsbury Diesels Shrewsbury Shrewsbury Electric Light Plant 13.75 Oil Oakdale Hydroelectric Facility West Boylston Massachusetts Electric Company 3.2 Hydro MassInnovation Fitchburg Fitchburg Fitchburg Gas & Electric Light Company 3 Solar Barre Landfill Barre Dominion Energy Marketing, Inc. 1 Landfill Gas Central Massachusetts Power Plants Although the region is home to nearly 2,500 megawatts of power plants, less than 3 percent qualify as renewable energy. Power plant resource Location Owner Capacity (MW) Fuel type Source: ISO New England

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