on December 04, 2019

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I’ll See You in Kiester Tonight!

Written by Isaac Orr

Tonight I will be in Kiester, Minnesota to talk about the high cost of wind and solar power as part of Center of the American Experiment's continued mission to reach the people of Greater Minnesota with free market ideas. I'll be presenting to a group of citizens who are concerned about the costs of wind turbines and transmission lines being built in their area and discussing the findings of our award winning research Doubling Down on Failure, How a 50 Percent by 2030 Renewable Energy Standard Would Cost Minnesota $80.2 Billion. With high-pressure land acquisition specialists circling the area, it has never...

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on December 03, 2019

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Reactions to Proposed Rate Increases Shows Minnesota Citizen’s Utility Board Cares More about Renewables Than Ratepayers

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment

There is no reason for CUB to be more upset about Minnesota Power’s rate increase than Xcel Energy's. I submit that the reason CUB is less forgiving of Minnesota Power's smaller rate increase is that the organization cares about renewables first, and ratepayers second....

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on December 02, 2019

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Wisconsin Utilities Rake in Increased Profits as Wind and Solar, Transmission Spending Increases

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment

Government-approved monopoly utility companies in the Midwest continue to pad their guaranteed corporate profits by building more wind and solar installations, along with the transmission lines needed to transport the energy generated by them to far-away population centers. This time, it is Wisconsin utilities that are doing the profit padding by adopting the same language used by Xcel Energy to mislead consumers on the cost of their electricity, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. "Alliant Energy announced a 7% increase in its 2020 dividends Wednesday as it reported earnings of $226 million in the third quarter of 2019. That’s up almost 10 percent...

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on November 20, 2019

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MPUC Continues to Address Utility System Reliability: Gas System Shortcomings Addressed, Electric Generation Issues Receive Scant Attention

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment

The Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association (MMUA) represents electric utilities that are owned and operated by municipal governments throughout the state of Minnesota. The association publishes a monthly newsletter, and one article highlighting the serious reliability issues presented by last winter's polar vortex was very interesting. I have reproduced the article below and added additional commentary to supplement some of the points made. Minnesota’s electric and natural gas utility systems were stressed last winter, failures occurred, and the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) has addressed the issue several times since then, including Oct. 10. The latest meeting revolved around the Xcel Energy gas...

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on November 18, 2019

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Our Perspective: Minnesota’s Days of Cheaper Electricity Seem Numbered

Written by Isaac Orr

in Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

This weekend, Mike Hughlett of the Star Tribune wrote an excellent article entitled "Minnesota's Days of Cheaper Electricity Seem Numbered," which details how Minnesota electricity prices have increased substantially in the last 15 years. The piece is an important acknowledgement that the energy policies pursued in Minnesota are causing electricity costs to rise, an argument Center of the American Experiment has been making since late 2017. I have included portions of the article below and added additional commentary to provide more context to help readers understand the topic in a more comprehensive manner. The article begins below: "Hefty rate hikes that Minnesota’s...

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on November 12, 2019

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Three Things Xcel Energy Doesn’t Want You to Know About Their Massive Increase in Electricity Prices

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

Xcel Energy recently announced its intention to impose a massive 15.2 percent increase in electricity prices in Minnesota over the course of three years to pay for a $466 million spending spree that will pay for wind turbines, transmission lines, distribution system and nuclear plant upgrades, higher corporate profits, and erase customer savings from energy efficiency. However, the 15.3 percent is just an average. In fact, the government-approved monopoly utility is seeking to raise residential electricity rates by 17.75 percent, representing a massive increase in electricity costs for Minnesota families. Here are three things Xcel Energy doesn't want you to know...

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on November 07, 2019

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High Electricity Prices Killed More Than 1,280 People in Japan After The Government Foolishly Shuttered All Nuclear Facilities Following Fukushima

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

High electricity prices are deadly. That's the conclusion reached by a new paper produced by the National Bureau Of Economic Research (NBER), which investigated the relationship between electricity prices and mortality after the Japanese government's decision to shut down all of its nuclear power plants following the Fukushima meltdown in March of 2011. According to NBER, shutting these plants down came at enormous costs, both economic and human. The paper reads: "To meet electricity demands, the reduction in nuclear energy production was offset by increased importation of fossil fuels, which increased the price of electricity by as much as 38 percent in some...

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on November 06, 2019

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Mass Decommissioning of German Wind Turbines Could Cost Hundreds of Millions of Euro More than Planned, Overwhelm Disposal Capacity

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Minnesota Economy

Germany is often lauded as an example that Minnesota should follow by renewable energy supporters, but it turns out Minnesota isn't the only part of the world that may have an expensive tab to pick up once their wind turbines reach the end of their 20 year useful lifetime. A new study from the German Federal Environmental Agency has found that the expected dismantling of thousands of old wind turbines in Germany could overburden the country's recycling capacities and lead to financial difficulties for the turbines' operators as reserves set aside might have been calculated too low, according to Clean Energy...

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on October 31, 2019

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Xcel Energy Sponsors Gala for Anti-Mining, Anti-Farming, Pro-Wind and Solar Green Group To Help Them Pad Their Profits

Written by Isaac Orr

in Agriculture, Climate, Energy, Environment, Greater Minnesota, Minnesota Economy

Minnesota families saw their electricity bills reach a new all-time high in 2018 due to an increasing reliance on expensive and unreliable wind and solar power. Despite the fact that Minnesota is already on track to meet current renewable energy mandates, Xcel Energy wants exceed these regulations by building 3,000 to 4,000 megawatts (MW) of solar, a massive amount, and shutting down their existing coal plants, which produce some of the lowest cost electricity in the state. It appears Xcel is enlisting the help of the Minnesota Center For Environmental Advocacy (MCEA) to help gain public approval for this plan by...

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on October 30, 2019

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Good News on Polymet! Minnesota Court of Appeals Rules Environmental Groups Can’t Move the Goalposts

Written by Isaac Orr

in Climate, Energy, Environment, Greater Minnesota, Minnesota Economy

There is good news on the Minnesota mining front, as the Minnesota Court of Appeals has rejected a challenge by anti-mining groups seeking to invalidate Minnesota's rules for non-ferrous mining. This is a big deal, because anti-mining groups, including the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, were trying to overturn the entire regulatory framework for how Minnesota's Department of Natural Resources evaluates and regulates mines that produce copper, nickel, platinum, cobalt, and other metals we depend upon every single day. Had this challenge succeeded, it would have been a massive blow to Minnesota's economic future, and a loss for the environment, as well. Minnesota...

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