Governor Deval Patrick proposed a resolution at the New England Governor's Conference that passed unanimously and will advance the process towards a coordinated regional procurement of renewable energy. The six New England states agreed to release a request for proposal (RFP) in 2013 for a significant amount of renewable energy. Taking advantage of economies of scale and market power, a competitive, coordinated regional procurement of renewable energy will help New England develop its vast, homegrown, renewable energy resource more cost effectively, enhance energy supply diversity, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate economic development.
This resolution charges The New England States Committee on Electricity (NESCOE) with developing and implementing a work plan on behalf of the New England Governors that will result in the release of an RFP for renewable energy in 2013. NESCOE will convene a procurement team of the top energy officials and other representatives from each state that will finalize the details of the competitive, coordinated, regional procurement over the course of the next year.
This resolution is the culmination of years of analysis and policy development led by NESCOE on behalf of The New England Governors. In September of 2009, the New England Governors adopted the New England Governors' Renewable Energy Blueprint which included technical analysis conducted by ISO New England (ISO-NE), and identified significant renewable energy resources in and around the region. It also included policy analysis that identified the potential for New England states to coordinate competitive renewable power procurement. According to a wind energy study conducted by ISO-NE in 2010, offshore and onshore wind energy alone could provide more than 12,000 MW of electricity, enough electricity to supply 24 percent of the region's electricity demand.
Governor Patrick has set ambitious goals for renewable energy: 250 MW of installed solar power by 2017 and 2,000 MW of wind energy by 2020. Governor Patrick also signed into law in 2008 The Green Communities Act, Global Warming Solutions Act, and Green Jobs Act.
The Green Communities Act, a comprehensive energy reform bill, accelerated the increase of renewable energy required of all electricity suppliers, rising from 4 percent of sales to 15 percent by 2020, and set a goal of 20 percent of all electricity coming from renewables by that time. The Global Warming Solutions Act requires the Commonwealth to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases by 25 percent by 2020, and by 80 percent by 2050 - the most ambitious greenhouse gas targets for any single state in the nation.
Source: Smart Energy Universe