Bringing the Wind Energy to Indiana

For the May-June issue of BizVoice magazine, I had the opportunity to write some stories on energy issues of the day. When energy is the topic, the focus normally is on the source of the power (coal, gas, nuclear, etc.). One of my pieces dealt with the need for enhanced transmission to move the electricity to where it is needed.

A potential newcomer to the transmission mix in Indiana is the Grain Belt Express Clean Line. This 700-mile overhead, high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line will deliver wind energy from Kansas to Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and states farther east. Starting in western Kansas, the line will connect at a substation near Sullivan in western Indiana.

The Indiana Chamber is supporting Grain Belt, a $2 billion project that the company says would enable $7 billion in investment in new wind farms and provide power for 1.4 million homes. Approximately 200 businesses in Indiana are involved in the wind energy and transmission supply chains.

The HVDC is said to be most efficient over long distances. It requires a narrower right of way, resulting in lower cost transmission and prices. Clean Line will fund the transmission and sell the capacity to wind generators and load-serving entities.

As noted in the upcoming BizVoice article, transmission approval and construction is a long-term process. Grain Belt requested public utility status in Indiana in November 2012, allowing it to operate, manage and control transmission facilities. Commerical operations could begin as early as 2017.

Energy, Water Supplies: We Better Take Them Seriously

When a lengthy information-gathering/discussion meeting ends with a lot of people nodding their heads and a few "ah-hah" moments, it has generally been a success.

An example is a recent Indiana Vision 2025 task force meeting dealing with energy and water issues. Sounds thrilling, right? But it was most informative and I’m confident the 15 or so business leaders present would agree. (2025, by the way, is the process of the Chamber looking beyond the short term and developing a long-range economic development plan for the state; you’ll hear more as the work continues over the course of the rest of the year).

Expert presenters on nuclear, wind, coal, energy policy and water issues presented a variety of interesting facts and future scenarios. I’ll only scratch the surface here. The task force will use the information and the importance of ensuring adequate, cost-efficent energy and water supplies in helping craft the state’s economic future.

A few numbers:

  • In the U.S, 104 nuclear reactors supply 20% of the nation’s electricity. Globally, 59 plants are under construction, 149 are planned in 28 countries and 344 additional ones are under consideration
  • Although no facilities are coming to Indiana any time soon, the state certainly has manufacturing opportunities to support the industry
  • "Demand sourcing" in the oil market refers to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates holding back oil capacity to help control fluctuations. (How successful is that strategy?)
  • The Energy Information Administration expects 45% of U.S. gas production by 2035 to come from shale gas — bringing a new set of questions about processes and reliability
  • Indiana now stands 11th in wind energy capacity. But despite 35% annual growth nationally over the last five years, wind accounts for just 2.3% of U.S. electricity
  • Jobs are also part of the wind picture. There are 400-plus manufacturing facilities for wind-related products, with Texas and Illinois leading the way in numbers employed in such positions
  • Indiana is one of only two states with more manufacturing workers than government workers. In Indiana, manufacturing accounts for 45% of all energy used
  • The average power plant in Indiana is 53 years old, the average worker in those plants is 52 and the average coal miner is 51
  • Indiana has pending water supply problems in the southern part of the state, an area that also shows a higher level of projected growth (if water and other resources are available)
  • Other states are utilizing regional systems to manage water supply, while local resources manage water demand and delivery 

Kharbanda: Manufacturing Opportunities Lie at Intersection of Economy and Environment

Jesse Kharbanda is the Executive Director of the Hoosier Environmental Council, Indiana’s leading environmental educator and advocate.

In this world of intense global competition, where does Indiana’s industrial future lie? Logistics, biosciences, and clean car technologies have been some of the areas that we’ve seen Indiana industry focus on. Indiana, in our view, has yet to tap into another sector – clean electricity component manufacturing, which produces the goods that make wind turbines briskly spin, solar panels soak in the sun, and air conditioning systems be energy hogs no longer. Indiana is surprisingly well positioned to lead in this sector: According to the Renewable Energy Policy Project, a DC-based think tank, Indiana has the second highest potential in the country to produce such goods.There’s no doubt some such companies, like Brevini Wind near Muncie, are locating to Indiana due to our business-friendly environment as it is.

But how might Indiana fully realize this potential, and actually become the second highest job generator of clean electricity jobs? Ask venture capitalists and commercial clean electricity developers, and they’ll tell you pointedly that Indiana needs a dedicated renewable energy policy: a Renewable Electricity Standard (RES), and a robust net metering program. Unfortunately, we’re the only state in the Midwest without the former, and we have the weakest net metering policy in our region. Policies like an RES and strong net metering have a triple dividend: they make Indiana a more hospitable climate for clean electricity manufacturing jobs, they move our electricity sector towards energy sources that are better for our health and environment, and they hedge against regulatory or economic-induced fossil fuel price shocks.

An organization like HEC and a trade group like the Indiana Chamber may not be in complete alignment on the right policy solution, but for the sake of jobs and improved environmental quality, let’s a find a way to work together to make sure that Indiana is a leader in this sector, a sector that will mushroom in the decades to come. HEC’s hand is extended.