North Carolina’s Big Clean Energy Plan An Example For Battleground States
Courtesy of RMI.
By Heather House & Shelby Kuenzli
On October 13, 2021, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper signed into law the first major piece of climate legislation in the Tar Heel state in recent years. North Carolina House Bill 951 — Energy Solutions for North Carolina — was passed by both chambers of the North Carolina state legislature with bipartisan support. Being that North Carolina is a battleground or “moderate” state, this legislation speaks volumes about how climate solutions can become ground for both sides to advance priorities.
With the federal clean energy performance plan hanging in the balance, it’s more important than ever for states and local governments to step up and implement climate action plans. Sixteen states thus far have passed laws requiring greenhouse gas emissions reduction, yet the only other Southeastern state to have done so before October 13 was Virginia. Many typically progressive states have yet to pass similar legislation.
This breakthrough law allows North Carolina to transition from having a Clean Energy Plan and carbon reduction targets to having a concrete law with enforceable steps. The law, while not perfect, is an important step forward and a win for the climate. With this legislation in place, the imminent rulemakings of the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) will be an important focus for stakeholders to shape the implementation of this new law.
Solar panels in North Carolina organic garden, by Cynthia Shahan/CleanTechnica.
What’s in the Law
The Energy Solutions for North Carolina Act is a breakthrough for advocates and stakeholders across the state who have been working for years to advance a clean energy agenda. The Act directs the NCUC to take all reasonable steps to reduce carbon emissions from the electric sector 70 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050. To achieve this goal, the NCUC will have to implement a plan with the electric public utilities including input from stakeholders.
Here are some significant wins from the Act:
- Of all new solar implemented, 45 percent will have to go through competitive solicitations and must be third-party owned and operated; the other 55 percent will remain utility-owned. This is a win for third-party solar developers and customer rates.
- All coal retirement expenses shall be at least 50 percent securitized, a step that can reduce the costs to utility customers of accelerated plant retirements.
- Performance-based regulations were authorized by H951. While this has the potential to be a win, the details of how the implementation shakes out will determine its success.
- The NCUC will explore on-bill financing of energy efficiency.
- The NCUC will develop a rider for a voluntary energy program that will allow customers to purchase renewable energy or renewable energy credits. This is posed to be a big win for commercial, industrial, and residential customers, but it remains unclear on whether this program will be inclusive of local governments.
These developments in isolation are wins for the state that stakeholders should be proud of; however, a lot of attention has been centered on the shortcomings of the Act. Consumers and consumer advocates, who are concerned about potential electricity rate increases, preferred 100 percent securitization of coal retirement costs and 100 percent competitive all-source procurement. While these targets were reduced, the passing of this legislation creates major strides forward in the right direction.
North Carolina’s Clean Energy Transition — Wins and Lessons Learned
While a lot of the legislation was crafted behind closed doors with few stakeholders directly involved, there were a lot of voices that helped influence this legislation that haven’t been historically present in energy or regulation engagements. For example, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) led an inclusive stakeholder process that included local governments, businesses, industries, power providers, technology developers, residents, and others to increase the use of clean energy technologies, energy efficiency measures, and clean transportation solutions. RMI was honored to support DEQ and the state to run this inclusive stakeholder process and summarize the input from these groups that led to the development of the Clean Energy Plan (CEP).
Following the release of the CEP, DEQ and the state demonstrated commendable leadership. They didn’t put the plan on a shelf. Instead, they worked with a broad set of North Carolina stakeholders to explore two of the top CEP recommendations. DEQ was tasked with setting up “key stakeholder groups to design policies that align regulatory incentives and processes with 21st-century public policy goals, customer expectations, utility needs, and technology innovation.”
RMI supported this effort by facilitating a group of North Carolina energy stakeholders, alongside the Regulatory Assistance Project, through the North Carolina Energy Regulatory Process to develop recommendations for policy and regulatory changes. The efforts of these North Carolina stakeholders yielded a variety of policy proposals and proposed legislation that were carried forward into the 2021 legislative session.
Another component that may have contributed to this legislation was stakeholder input received on Duke’s 2020 Biennial Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). RMI, through the American Cities Climate Challenge Renewables Accelerator, in partnership with World Resources Institute, supported 15 North Carolina cities and counties in learning about pathways for elevating their goals and priorities. The local governments from across the state then requested that the NCUC take their clean energy goals into consideration when reviewing the IRP. All of these cities’ concerns became key topics during legislative discussions. This is prime example of the power that local governments have in swaying the clean energy conversation in their state.
The persistent work of cities, stakeholders, and advocates in North Carolina to make their voices, and the voices they represent, heard haven’t gone unanswered. While the resulting legislation in North Carolina may not be ideal from the perspective of all stakeholders, because of their efforts, the law now better supports a cleaner and more equitable energy transition plan.
After Legislation Comes Implementation
While the Energy Solutions for North Carolina Act is a big win for the state and an example of bipartisan climate collaboration, more work is ahead of North Carolina stakeholders. Over the next 180 days, the commission will host several proceedings and rulemakings that will determine the extent to which the Act’s vision is realized. North Carolina stakeholders need to provide input to ensure the ambition of the North Carolina Clean Energy Plan’s main carbon reduction target is met equitably. RMI was pleased to have the opportunity to support North Carolina stakeholders in getting to this point and looks forward to continuing to support them in realizing the law’s target CO2 reductions.
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Aviation startup Electra made history last month when its EL2 became the first hybrid-electric Ultra Short Take-off and Landing (uSTOL) aircraft to successfully complete helicopter-like take-offs and landings at the Watertown International Airport.
Founded to provide affordable air travel without airports, emissions, or noise, Electra’s stated goal was to build an aircraft that could deliver on the promises of eVTOL aircraft at a significantly reduced cost compared to its more drone-like competitors. In that context, the demonstration at Watertown isn’t a publicity stunt, but part of concerted effort to validate Electra’s uSTOL performance under real-world conditions at a commercial airport — exactly the kind of place that regional operators, cargo carriers, and emergency responders actually fly in and out of.
Hitting those marks now will help Electra clear a path for FAA certification and prove that the company can deliver on the $9 billion worth of promises its made (so far).
“Electra is grateful to the team at Watertown International Airport for enabling this demonstration of the EL2’s Ultra Short capabilities in an off-runway capacity,” explains Tom Carto, director of market development at Electra. “Our Ultra Short aircraft will offer the potential to increase the use of general aviation airports and expand the capacity of larger hubs by enabling takeoffs and landings on ramps and taxiways instead of runways, feeding in regional connections without adding to runway congestion. These transformative and practical capabilities will open the door to Direct Aviation and point-to-point connections in a way that will make it easier for people to get from the where they are to where they want to go.”
The EL2’s innovative “blown lift” design features eight electric motors on the plane’s wings, enabling take-off and landing in as little as 150 feet.
Electra says the final version of its aircraft will be able operate from airfields as small as 300 x 100 ft (90 x 30 m), or about one-tenth the length of a standard airport runway. That means that, even if these eSTOL aircraft don’t open up quite as many spaces for air travel as eVTOLs, do, they’ll still be extremely flexible – and more than capable of operating from the roofs of many existing buildings and parking structures.
Obviously
And, of course, the Air Force wants one.
NOTE: in response to some of the comments, I want to point out that the Electra is capable of sustained, electric-only powered flight and uses the genset for remote operations/extended range. I should have made that clearer. This is arguably more EREV than EV.
SOURCES | IMAGES: Electra; via Oswego County Business.
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The US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) closed a $1 billion loan to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1, a nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island in Londonderry Township, Pennsylvania.
The money is being loaned to Constellation Energy Generation, which is renaming the 835 megawatt (MW) Three Mile Island Unit 1 the Crane Clean Energy Center. Constellation said in September 2024 that it would restart the reactor under a power purchase agreement with Microsoft, which needs more clean power to feed its growing data-center demand.
The project is estimated to cost around $1.6 billion, and the DOE says the project will create around 600 jobs. The reactor is expected to start generating power again in 2027.
Three Mile Island Unit 1 (in the foreground in the photo above) went offline in 2019 because it could no longer compete with cheaper natural gas, but it wasn’t decommissioned. It’s capable of powering the equivalent of approximately 800,000 homes. It’s on the same site as the Unit 2 reactor (in the background in the photo above) that went into partial nuclear meltdown in 1979, and is known as the worst commercial nuclear accident in US history.
When asked about the loan’s timing, Greg Beard, senior adviser to the Loan Programs Office, told reporters on a call that it would “lower the cost of capital and make power cheaper for those PJM [Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland] ratepayers.” Data centers are driving up electricity costs for consumers.
Read more: DOE props up dying coal with $625M days after Wright mocks clean energy subsidies
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An affordable Bronco EV? Not for those in the US. Ford opened orders for the electric Bronco in China, starting at under $33,000.
Ford Bronco electric pre-orders open at under $33,000
Ford announced the All-Wheel Drive electric SUV is officially open for pre-sale on Tuesday, starting at RMB 229,800 ($32,300).
The electric Bronco is available in pure electric (EV) and extended range electric vehicle (EREV) options. It’s offered in three variants, priced from RMB 229,800 ($32,300) to RMB 272,800 ($38,400).
All models are All Wheel Drive, while the pure electric version costs an extra 10,000 yuan ($1,400). Ford is offering pre-sale buyers some pretty sweet benefits, including a camping experience package (with an added roof tent), a Mountain Kitchen Multi-Function Tailgate gift, an overnight stay package (for your vehicle), and more.
The electric Ford Bronco is about the same size as the standard 4-door version sold in the US at 5,025 mm long, 1,960 mm wide, and 1,815 mm tall.
Although it may look the same, the EV version draws power from a 105.4 kWh LFP battery pack from BYD’s FinFreams, providing up to 650 km (404 miles) CLTC driving range.
It’s equipped with two electric motors, one in the front and the other in the rear, producing a combined 445 horsepower (332 kW).
The EREV version combines a 43.7 kWh battery with a 1.5T engine, delivering a pure-electric range of 220 km (137 miles) and a combined CLTC driving range of 1,220 km (758 miles).
Some of the higher trims feature Ford’s Fuyu ADAS system, developed exclusively for buyers in China with a roof-mounted LiDAR and over 30 sensors and cameras. It even features a cool “off-road logbook” that shows drivers over 20 popular routes across China.
The interior is custom-tailored for Chinese buyers with a 15.6″ central infotainment and a smaller driver display screen. It also offers a massive 70″ AR head-up display (HUD).
Unlike the Ford vehicles we’re accustomed to seeing, the electric Bronco includes a 7.5L refrigerator in the center console.
The AWD electric SUV is coming at a critical time as Ford aims to revamp its business in China. Ford is working with local partners on new technologies, designs, and powertrain ideas for global markets.
Ford’s sales in China are down by over 14% through October this year, but new electrified vehicles, including the Bronco, are expected to help turn things around. Ford’s lineup in China mainly consists of gas-powered vehicles, which have quickly fallen out of favor with buyers shifting to more advanced, more efficient, and often lower-priced domestic EVs.
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