Couple statements about reliability and cost
Northern Indiana Public Service Company
Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission: Cause 45159 [link [1]] —
Verified Direct Testimony of Andrew S. Campbell, Director of Regulatory Support & Planning, Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) [link [2]]
Q18. How will reliability be maintained when the wind isn’t blowing?
A18. NIPSCO will continue to dispatch its steam and gas fleet and other available wind generation, as well as purchase power from MISO, to meet customer demand and reliability needs throughout the term of the Roaming Bison Wind Energy PPA. This ensures that when the wind is not blowing customers will continue to receive reliable service every hour of every day.
Verified Direct Testimony of Benjamin Felton, Senior Vice President, NIPSCO Electric [link [3]]
Q23. Do reductions in the dispatch of NIPSCO’s coal units impact the cost to operate those units?
A23. Yes. NIPSCO’s coal units were engineered to be used as base load units that run consistently over long periods of time, and they were not designed to ramp up and down in response to short term market signals. As those units become less economical, the cost to operate them increases because in addition to the increased maintenance required of older units, the added expenses to ramp the units up and down are incurred more frequently. NIPSCO must remain mindful of how that added expense to customers balances against the impact on reliability. In spite of the cost control efforts NIPSCO has undertaken as I have referenced above, the operational characteristics of these plants dictate that some increases in costs cannot be avoided when the plants are operated outside of the parameters for which they were designed.
[This was the same Cause in which the Sierra Club asserted their interest, which was for an arm of the energy industry, not the environment: “Sierra Club seeks full intervention in order to ensure that its interests in lower cost and cleaner energy options are fully represented, and to bring to this proceeding its expertise in electric utility matters.” (link [4])]
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/documents/couple-statements-about-reliability-and-cost/
URLs in this post:
[1] link: https://iurc.portal.in.gov/legal-case-details/?id=17813ed6-1add-e811-8145-1458d04e2938
[2] link: https://iurc.portal.in.gov/_entity/sharepointdocumentlocation/0bd899c2-6326-e911-814c-1458d04e2938/bb9c6bba-fd52-45ad-8e64-a444aef13c39?file=45196%20NIPSCO_Petitioners%20Confidential%20Exhibit%20No%201%20Campbell_02012019_Redacted.pdf
[3] link: https://iurc.portal.in.gov/_entity/sharepointdocumentlocation/25c031de-43dd-e811-8145-1458d04e2938/bb9c6bba-fd52-45ad-8e64-a444aef13c39?file=45159%20NIPSCO%20Petitioner%20Exhibit%20No%207%20Felton%2010312018.pdf
[4] link: https://iurc.portal.in.gov/_entity/sharepointdocumentlocation/94d312ff-33f3-e811-8267-1458d04e1b18/bb9c6bba-fd52-45ad-8e64-a444aef13c39?file=45159%20Sierra%20Club%20Petition%20to%20Intervene%20112818.pdf