AETP Newsletter, February 2025
New From AETP
New articles on HB 307
AETP has published two new articles on HB 307, the major energy bill passed last year. One article looks at the bill’s provisions and their impact to date. The second looks at the bill’s complicated path through the Legislature and how the Railbelt utilities reacted to one of its key provisions–the establishment of a Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) for the Railbelt.
HB 307–an Overview and Implementation
HB 307–The Legislative Process
Coming soon to AETP:
–Coverage of the Railbelt cooperative board elections
–An overview of developments in community solar
–An examination of how the current application of the PCE penalizes communities for utilizing recovered heat and excess renewable power for heating
–A new transparency scorecard looking at the availability of information on utility websites, and an update of the original scorecard on board meeting access
Energy News:
Current Term of RCA Chair Ends This Week
The current term of Commissioner John Espindola ends on Saturday March 1. Governor Dunleavy appointed Espindola to fill the remainder of former Commissioner Dan Sullivan’s term after he stepped down in 2023. Espindola was elected as RCA Chair in September 2024. As of February 27, no announcement had been made about Espindola’s reappointment or the appointment of someone else to this seat. The governor’s office did not respond to an inquiry about Espindola’s potential reappointment.
AS 42.04.020(b) states that a commissioner can continue to serve on the RCA after the end of their term until a replacement is named. It would be unusual, however, for a commissioner whose term has expired to serve as Chair. If Espindola is reappointed, he will need to meet the new qualifications for commissioners set by HB 307. This spring the Legislature will hold confirmation hearings for the three other recently appointed Commissioners—John Springsteen, Steven DeVries, and Mark Johnston.
CEA submits new community solar tariff
Chugach Electric submitted a new tariff to the RCA for the community solar project it announced in 2024. The new plan lowers the annual subscription fee members would pay from $267 a panel to $110 a panel. The lower fee is due to an increase in the project’s size and an expected investment tax credit that will cover 40% of project costs. Although the per panel price has dropped considerably, at current CEA rates members would still pay slightly more for their subscription than they would receive in credit for the power generated (a difference of about $14 a year per panel, based on the projected output of 399 kWh a year).
CEA plans to open the application process for this program in March, with the facility slated to come online in July. This project is not covered by SB 152, as the RCA is still developing the regulations needed to implement that bill. AETP will publish a piece on this and other developments around community solar projects in March.
Hilcorp Announces It Will Develop an LNG Import Facility.
On February 6, Hilcorp announced that it plans to develop an LNG import facility at the site of the old LNG export terminal in Nikiski. They will collaborate with Marathon Petroleum, who currently owns the facility. Chugach Electric is also associated with the project. This is a separate LNG import facility from the one announced by ENSTAR in December.
For more, see this story from the Alaska Beacon or this story from the ADN.
Numerous Alaskan Renewable Energy Projects Threatened By Trump Administration’s Freezing of Federal Funds
The fate of numerous energy projects across the state is uncertain following the federal freeze on all energy-related grants. More than $1 billion in grants for Alaskan projects are affected.
For more, see this story from the ADN and this story from the Frontiersman.
30-megawatt Solar Project on Kenai Peninsula Cancelled
The developer of a proposed 30-megawatt solar farm (the Puppy Dog Lake project) near Nikiski withdrew from their power purchase agreement with HEA. The project’s financer said the deal no longer made sense due to changing economic circumstances, including the possible elimination of an investment tax credit. The Alaskan developer, Renewable IPP, has also pulled out of the project, which could be resurrected in the future. Renewable IPP announced it was also withdrawing from several other solar projects in the state.
For more, see this story in the ADN.
Cooperative News:
Chugach Electric Association (CEA)
Next board meeting—March 26 at 4 p.m.
Board website: https://www.chugachelectric.com/your-cooperative/board-of-directors
Recent News:
The CEA Nominating Committee has advanced three candidates for the one seat up for election this year. The candidates are incumbent director Sam Cason, Katherine Jernstrom, and Bernie Smith. Members interested in running for the board can still apply to do so via the petition process, which closes on March 21. Voting will begin in late April and run through the CEA Annual Meeting on May 30.
More information about the election can be found at: https://www.chugachelectric.com/your-cooperative/news-community/annual-meeting/annual-meeting-election
As noted above, CEA has also announced that it will participate in Hilcorp’s planned LNG import facility.
Recent RCA filings:
On January 30, the RCA approved CEA’s new permanent rates, bringing its rate case to a conclusion. The new rates took effect on February 1.
On February 5, the RCA approved CEA’s Simplified Rate Filing (SRF) request for an 8% increase in rates. The Regulatory Affairs and Public Advocacy Section of the Attorney General’s office (RAPA) and RSD Properties had questioned the timing of this filing, but the commissioners chose not to suspend it for investigation. The overall impact on members’ bills will be about 5%. The new rates took effect on February 10.
CEA filed to change its Gas Transfer Price (the amount it charges itself for natural gas from the Beluga River Unit it owns a 67% stake in). Public comments are due by March 4.
Golden Valley Electric Association:
Next board meeting--March 25, 2025 at 6:30 p.m.
A recap of the January board meeting will be posted to AETP’s Community page soon.
Board website: https://www.gvea.com/about-us/board-of-directors/
Recent News:
GVEA’s District 5 and District 6 Nominating Committees have each advanced one candidate for the upcoming board election. In District 5, Bradley Swope was nominated (the incumbent director, Chris Bunch, is not running for reelection). In District 6, incumbent director Fred Sheen was nominated. Candidates interested in running via the petition process have until 9 a.m. on March 5 to submit an application packet. More information is available on the GVEA election page.
GVEA sent a message to members in mid-January warning of potential power disruptions in the next few months. Members were told that, if multiple generation units went offline unexpectedly, the utility might be forced to institute rolling blackouts. This is due to the unavailability of its usual sources of backup power (including Bradley Lake power, temporarily unavailable due to work on transmission lines). While the likelihood of such an event is small, GVEA urged members to consider having backup power, such as generators or storage batteries.
At the February 25 GVEA board meeting, staff announced that the long-awaited on-bill financing program will be launched by the end of the month. The website should be available by March 1, and an article on the program will appear in the March issue of Ruralite.
At its February board meeting, GVEA also announced it is contemplating changes to its SNAP program. The program was originally designed to incentivize people to install home solar panels. The annual payments from the program to participants have been shrinking, as the number of participants has grown while the voluntary contributions from members to fund the program have fallen steadily.
Homer Electric Association (HEA):
Next Board meeting: March 18 at noon.
Board website: https://www.homerelectric.com/my-cooperative/board-of-directors/
Recent news:
Applications to apply to be a candidate in the HEA’s 2025 board election are due by 5 p.m. on Friday February 28. More information is available on the HEA elections page.
As mentioned above, the developers of the Puppy Dog Lake solar farm withdrew from their power purchase agreement with HEA in late January. The agreement had not yet been approved by the RCA.
Recent RCA filings:
On February 13, HEA made a Simplified Rate Filing with the RCA, requesting a 3% increase in rates, to go into effect on April 1. The average estimated bill impact will be 1.77%.
In December, HEA requested permission to raise its net-metering cap from 7% of nameplate capacity to 9%, due to the program’s continued growth. The RCA approved this request on January 30. The RCA is in the process of considering revisions to its net-metering regulation (docket R-24-003).
Matanuska Electric Association (MEA):
Next board meeting: March 17, 2025 at 4 p.m.
A recap of the February 2025 board meeting can be found here.
Board website: https://www.mea.coop/co-op-benefits/board-of-directors
Recent News:
The MEA Election Committee advanced candidates for the two board seats up for election this spring. For the at-large seat, it advanced incumbent director Arthur Keyes, Tyler Vose, and Michael Willmon. For the Matanusak District it advanced incumbent Mark Masteller and Thomas Bergey. Voting will begin in early April and run through the MEA Annual Meeting on April 29.
Interested in contributing to AETP?
There are a variety of ways you can help in our coverage of Alaska’s energy sector. You can provide a summary of a utility board meeting or write an opinion piece on an issue that is important to you. AETP’s editor will work with anyone interested in writing a new story as a citizen journalist. If you are interested in contributing to AETP or just finding out more, contact Brian Kassof at brian@akpirg.org. More information about contributing to AETP, including templates for board meetings, see our Toolkit page.