Transmission, Part III: Alternative Solutions

By Joni Sliger, Energy Fellow

Distributed generation, like this solar facility in Hawaii,
could reduce the need for new transmission lines.
Credit: SunPower / NREL

Our electricity system depends on transmission infrastructure, and our clean energy future may well depend on the development of new and upgraded transmission lines. This blog series has explored the significance of the transmission system and one way (forming an RTO) to manage the system better for greater regional benefits. This final post explores three ways to advance a clean energy future while minimizing the need for new transmission investments.

1. Build Locally

One way to reduce the need for new transmission is to produce more electricity locally. Our current transmission system carries electricity to us from power plants that may be hundreds of miles away. While it may be desirable to build some lengthy transmission lines to reach distant renewable energy sources, the need for new lines can potentially be offset by siting power sources near demand.

One way to build local is to encourage distributed generation, such as rooftop solar. This requires encouraging individuals and businesses to produce their own renewable energy on-site. For example, in Oregon, one key policy driving rooftop solar is the Residential Energy Tax Credit. If the legislature fails to extend the tax credit beyond its 2017 sunset date, Oregon is likely to see fewer rooftop solar installations and more need for costly transmission investments.

2. Invest in New Technologies, like Ocean Energy

Ocean energy, including wave energy and tidal energy, is an under-developed resource that would enable much more local energy production along the coasts.  As I’ve discussed previously, over half of the U.S. population lives within 50 miles of a coastline. According to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, wave energy alone could feasibly meet almost a third of the U.S.’s energy needs. Oregon could build short transmission lines out to ocean energy facilities along its coast instead of building lines hundreds of miles long to reach out-of-state resources, like wind farms in Wyoming.

At the forefront of marine energy development, Oregon has enacted a policy position that recognizes the importance of ocean energy. In 2015, the legislature passed a law (now codified as Oregon Revised Statute § 757.811) to mandate that “any regional planning processes . . . adequately consider the transmission of electricity from ocean renewable energy.” While more research and development is needed to bring more ocean energy sources online, Oregon has taken one important step towards smarter transmission planning through this law.

3. Leverage Existing Infrastructure, like Railroads, for Transmission Lines

Electrifying the railroad system offers another way to develop the transmission we need while minimizing the cost and environmental impacts. Instead of paying for expensive siting procedures to, for example, minimize impacts on wildlife, we can leverage the existing railroad system by integrating new transmission lines into the railroads. Electric lines can carry more electricity than the trains need, allowing the railroads to serve as both a clean transportation strategy and a ready transmission solution.

A campaign called Solutionary Rail is advocating for railroad electrification as a way to revitalize rural communities, provide a ‘just transition’ for railroad workers needing employment as the industry moves away from predominantly shipping fossil fuels, and to provide the key transmission infrastructure we need to connect to distant renewable energy sources.  For example, the campaign is pushing first for the electrification of the BNSF Northern Transcon line between Seattle and Chicago. Electrifying this line could provide several benefits, including the transmission necessary for distant wind farms in Wyoming to reach power-hungry urban centers, like Seattle.

Electrified railroads are already a possibility; about half the rail lines in Europe are electric. Even just using existing railroad rights-of-way as a place to co-site transmission lines would facilitate an easier siting process. The U.S. should start looking to the future and invest, for the benefit of its environment, its economy, and its communities.

To attain a clean energy future, the U.S. needs to invest in its transmission system. By building locally, investing in new technologies like ocean energy, and leveraging existing infrastructure like railroads, we can build a better transmission system and a better world. 

Oregon Prepares to Buoy Up Wave Energy

Credit: U.S. Department of Energy

By Joni Sliger, Energy Fellow

Oregon legislators may soon provide financial support to a wave energy test center planned off the coast of Newport, Oregon, known as the Pacific Marine Energy Center South Energy Test Site (or PMEC-SETS). After the legislature convenes this Wednesday, the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources will begin discussing SB 285, a bill to appropriate $4.6 million for the facility. State funding will (hopefully) supplement a promised grant from the U.S. Department of Energy of up to $40 million. Optimistically assuming that the federal grant (which is “subject to appropriations”) makes it through the Trump administration gauntlet, here’s what Oregon can expect from PMEC-SETS.

PMEC-SETS will be a deepwater test facility for utility-scale wave energy converters. In other words, it will provide the offshore infrastructure necessary for developers to test huge devices that aim to capture energy from ocean waves and transform it into electricity. As shown in the image above, the facility will include anchors off the coast to which wave energy converters can attach for tests; these anchors will connect to the onshore grid network via undersea transmission cables. The plan is for the facility to be fully operational by 2020. According to the DOE, the facility will be a world-class testing facility with the ability to accommodate up to 20 converters at a time and supply up to 20 MW of electricity to the grid. PMEC’s director Belinda Batten describes the testing as “the last step before commercialization” since testing enables developers to prove the seaworthiness and cost-competitiveness of their technologies. By providing a place for developers to test new wave technologies, PMEC-SETS will facilitate the development and growth of the wave energy industry.

As I noted in a previous post, wave energy is a very new technology, but it has huge potential. According to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, wave energy could feasibly meet almost a third of the U.S.’s energy needs. Additionally, because over half of the U.S. population lives within 50 miles of a coastline, wave energy could be produced close to where it is consumed, reducing the need for additional transmission infrastructure. To obtain significant generation from wave power, however, more projects need to be deployed. Some projects and testing facilities exist, as shown in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Marine and Hydrokinetic Database's map, but not many: only three sites off the coast of Washington, Oregon, or California are currently testing wave electricity-generating projects, 2 of which are off Oregon’s coast.

Oregon is particularly well-suited to leading wave energy development. The Oregon Wave Energy Trust describes Oregon as “uniquely positioned to be North America’s leader in ocean energy” because of the potential energy of the state’s coast plus the state’s nearby transmission system, transportation infrastructure, ready manufacturing and supply chain, and support from legislators and research institutions. If the new industry takes off, it could provide numerous jobs to Oregon’s communities in addition to the many other benefits of local renewable energy generation. To become a leader in wave energy, Oregon needs to enact SB 285 and support projects like PMEC-SETS.