Clean Line Does NOT Sell Electricity!
CLEAN LINE DOES NOT SELL ELECTRICITY!
Except...
However, [Clean Line's Mark] Lawlor says the wind farms aren't even built yet.
"They estimated that they will save their customers $10 million a year because this power is so much cheaper than they can get today," Mark Lawlor, Director of Development with Clean Line, said.
I don't think the cities estimated that they will save their customers anything. I think Clean Line did their estimating for them. And then pretended that the cities did it themselves. From Clean Line's Proposal to The Missouri Joint Municipal Electric Utility Commission:
Preliminary calculations, assuming existing production tax credits for wind project participation in the project, could reduce costs by as much as $10M/year or $10 per megawatt hour compared to delivery of other wind projects from SPP to MISO.
In addition, Clean Line's $10M savings proposal "assumes existing production tax credits for wind project participation in the project." Except these wind farms aren't even built yet. And only wind farms that begin construction in 2016 are eligible for the "existing production tax credit" of $.023/kwh generated. Any future wind farms constructed will have their tax credit reduced and eventually phased out. The potential cost of future wind power is directly related to the construction date of the wind farm. And
The energy suppliers are waiting on approval to build the transmission line, which was already denied twice by the Public Service Commission.
Now let's examine another fact...
Clean Line is NOT Negotiating Directly With Cities!
That ship has sailed. Hannibal must now negotiate with the MJMEUC to purchase Clean Line transmission capacity from MJMEUC, if it believes the bucket of $10M savings hogwash.
Clean Line's biggest fan in the City of Hannibal can now negotiate only with MJMEUC to sign up for a portion of the 200 MW of capacity on Clean Line that the organization optioned in its "contract" with Clean Line. Any future agreement with Hannibal is not additional capacity, or another "contract" with Clean Line. It's simply MJMEUC re-sellling its option to Hannibal.
MJMEUC only purchased an option to buy up to 200 MW of capacity, because its "contract" with Clean Line allows MJMEUC to decide how much capacity it will actually purchase 60 days before Clean Line would supposedly begin transmitting electricity. At that time, MJMEUC can opt to purchase absolutely nothing.
In addition, Transmission Customer may, through the Notice of Decision, reduce any or all of the Contract Capacities under this Agreement without limit or penalty. All other terms and conditions in this Agreement will remain in effect with respect to such Contract Capacities, if any, that remain after such reduction. For the avoidance of doubt, and notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, (i) the final KS-MO
Transmission Service Contract Capacity as reflected in tile Notice of Decision may be any amount between 0 and 200 MW; (ii) if Transmission Customer's total KS-MO Transmission Service amount is less than or equal to 100 MW, such Contract Capacity shall all be subject to the pricing, terms and conditions applicable to the first tranche; (iii) if Transmission Customer's total KS-MO Transmission Service amount exceeds 100 MW, the amount of Contract Capacity that exceeds 100 MW shall be subject to the pricing, terms and conditions applicable to the
second tranche; (iv) unless Transmission Customer has elected the additional 25 MW pursuant to Section 3.3, the final MO-PJM Transmission Service Contract Capacity as reflected in the Notice of Decision may be any amount between 0 and 25 MW and shall be subject to the pricing, terms and conditions of this Agreement other than Section 3.3; and (v) if Transmission Customer has elected the additional 25 MW pursuant to Section 3.3, the final MO-PJM Transmission Service Contract Capacity as reflected in the Notice of Decision may be any amount between 0 and 50 MW, and if such Contract Capacity exceeds 25 MW, the amount of the Contract Capacity that
exceeds 25 MW shall be subject to the pricing, terms and conditions stated in Section 3.3.
And about that MO-PJM service: Clean Line is offering service on its line for MJMEUC to export its members' own dirty power into another region, which will prolong the life of dirty, old electric generators owned by member Cities. Because, despite his profession of love for "clean" wind power, Bob Stevenson is now asking the City of Hannibal to investigate the purchase of some old, dirty diesel electricity generators from the city of Palmyra. Bob thinks it might be cheaper. Diesel generators are about as dirty as they come -- they run on diesel fuel. Is Bob planning to ship his dirty diesel power to PJM on a Clean Line?
Of course, if Hannibal is getting a large portion of its power supply from diesel generators, could it really advertise: “There are also potential benefits to several of our local businesses in the fact that they could advertise that their products were made with renewable resources or ‘clean energy”?
So, let's review with a pop quiz!