North Carolina: Senate Panel Gives First OK to Renewables, Efficiency Bill
The measure won support from the Senate Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources Committee chaired by its sponsor, Sen. Charlie Albertson, D-Duplin. It needs approval from the Senate Finance Committee before it will face a full chamber vote.
The bill orders North Carolina public utilities to provide 12.5 percent of their retail power from renewables and efficiency by the year 2021. Electric co-ops and municipal power companies would have a 10 percent standard.
Utility companies praised the measure — crafted during more than a dozen stakeholder meetings — as a way to guarantee that they will be able to meet growing customer demand while still turning to "greener" power sources.
"We believe this bill is so good because it is a comprehensive policy," said Cari Boyce, spokeswoman for Progress Energy.
But environmental groups were unhappy that the bill retained language that would allow the power companies to recover the cost of building coal and nuclear power plants by charging customers before those plants come on line.
The House may prove less friendly to that section, and opponents will push for its removal when the measure gets to that chamber, said Elizabeth Ouzts, director of Environment North Carolina.
Related News

Biggest in Canada: Bruce Power doubles PPE donation
WINGHAM, ONT. - The world’s largest nuclear plant, just made Canada’s largest donation of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Bruce Power is doubling it’s initial donation of 600,000 masks, gloves and gowns for front-line health workers, to 1.2 million pieces of PPE.
The company, which operates the Bruce Nuclear station near Kincardine, Ont. plans to have the equipment in the hands of hospitals, long-term care homes and first responders by the end of April.
It’s not the only thing Bruce Power is doing to help out Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic:
Bruce Power has donated $300,000 to 37 food banks in Midwestern Ontario.
- They’re also working…