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Nevada could become exporter of renewable energy

what will it take for Nevada’s renewable-energy sector to take off, and could 2011 be the banner year green-power advocates have been waiting for?….Building on the state’s renewable-energy resources will also generate jobs and position Nevada as an important exporter of an important future power source,

Nevada’s choice: Use natural resources to go green or perish By Jennifer Robison LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL Feb. 20, 2011With its brilliant sunshine, whipping winds, geothermal hot spots and vast tracts of empty land, Nevada has long held promise as a potential center of green power.

But even after years of talk about how the Silver State can capitalize on its natural renewable resources, the state still gets just 10 percent to 12 percent of its energy from green projects.

So what will it take for Nevada’s renewable-energy sector to take off, and could 2011 be the banner year green-power advocates have been waiting for?

Tom Fair, NV Energy’s vice president of renewable energy, stops short of forecasting 2011 as a breakthrough year for green energy.

But he did say Nevada’s renewable-power sector is nearing a tipping point that will yield big strides in the next couple of years……..

maximizing Nevada’s renewable potential will require going beyond ON Line, Drakulich added. The line will be an important component to providing Las Vegas and Reno with green energy, but if Nevada’s officials and power developers really want renewable energy to flourish here, they’ll need to add to ON Line, with additional transmission infrastructure linking the state’s grids to substations in Idaho and the Eldorado Valley, south of Las Vegas. Linking to those points will give Nevada’s power developers access to California’s massive energy markets, Drakulich said.

Transmission lines alone won’t do the trick, though.

Nevada’s leaders must meet with California’s officials to discuss how the Silver State might best serve the power needs of the Golden State, where a tough portfolio standard requires utilities to obtain 33 percent of their power from renewables by 2020.

“Our export market really is California. They have a tremendous need,” Drakulich said. “We have to figure out if we can get there with transmission lines, and if they’ll buy our power. They may not be able to meet their needs on their own, and that’s where we’ll come in.”………

Building on the state’s renewable-energy resources will also generate jobs and position Nevada as an important exporter of an important future power source, Drakulich added.

“People need to invest in something to help this state recover,” she said. “We’re looking to bring in industries with a pulse, and green energy happens to be one of them. At the end of the day, we have to put people back to work, and we have to create sources of revenue in this state. If we’re creating an export market, it’s not going to cost Nevadans anything.”

Contact reporter Jennifer Robison at jrobison @reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4512.

Nevada’s choice: Use natural resources to go green or perish – Business – ReviewJournal.com

February 20, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | renewable, USA