Renewable energy program remains difficult to draft
Ben Dorger, Standard-Examiner file photo
Seniors at St. Joseph Catholic High School wear sunglasses and hold a solar panel to celebrate the completion of 157 solar panel installation on the roof of the school on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019. Senior Olivia Arbogast, in front of the panel on the lower right, worked with the school to obtain a grant from Rocky Mountain Power's Blue Sky program to complete the project.OGDEN — The approval of three documents is the last hurdle for establishing the Community Renewable Energy Program in Ogden.
Executive Director Janene Eller-Smith told the Ogden City Council that once the final documents are approved, the city can submit its Community Renewable Energy Agency’s application to the Public Service Commission.
According to Eller-Smith, the CREP Board and other stakeholders are working hard to submit the final documents by the end of the year.
“I think that’s optimistic, but that’s still the goal they are working towards,” she said.
The Governance Agreement, approved in July 2021, is one of four important documents needed for submittal. It addresses the relationship between the communities and the agency, including establishing how communities will vote on different aspects of the program.
To date, it is the only one to be completed and approved by the council. The Ogden City Council first adopted a joint resolution on renewable energy on Dec. 3, 2019.
Since that day, when Ogden joined 22 communities throughout Utah, five have dropped the plans.
Going from 23 communities to 18, though, does not the change the $3 million cost of implementing the program. Due to costs in producing certain levels of energy and participating communities having the ability to opt out of the program at any time, Eller-Smith said the financial backstop is a significant concern.
The program could hit a critical point if more communities drop off and there is still a sizable amount left to pay, according to Eller-Smith.
The financial backstop, which falls under the utility agreement outlining the relationship between communities and Rocky Mountain Power, is still being worked on.
Each participating community is required to complete its own utility agreement, which will include a policy regarding termination fees, the process for purchasing assets and how existing assets will be replaced.
With CREP being the first of its kind in the nation, drafting agreements, plans and ordinances have been a painstaking process with those involved dedicating thousands of hours to see it through.
A fact-finding session on the program is scheduled for Nov. 29, from 6-7:30 p.m.