The wind turbine debate in Seneca County spilled over into the question-and-answer session at the North Central Electric Cooperative annual meeting in June at the Seneca County Fairgrounds.
Asked what the cooperative’s position is on the proposed Seneca County wind projects, General Manager Markus Bryant said, “North Central Electric has not taken any position either pro or con on the wind projects in the county.”
While Bryant and the cooperative have not taken a position on whether turbines should be allowed in the area, he is not silent on the government subsidies extended to the wind and solar industries.
“Our issues with wind turbines have more to do with state and federal policy issues,” Bryant said. “Federal production tax credits combined with the government-mandated wind and solar purchases create subsidies in the wholesale power markets that are unfair to traditional power sources like coal, nuclear, and even gas generation.”
“The reason this is a concern to us is that our wholesale power supplier, Buckeye Power, has to sell its power into the power markets and then has to buy from that market,” Bryant said. “The wind generators are able to bid zero into the market because they are currently getting a 2.4 cent per kilowatt-hour credit. That drives the price down received by other generators. That’s one of the reasons AEP (American Electric Power) is getting out of the power generation business. One of the consequences is that Buckeye Power does not get full value from the market for its generation. Who do you suppose makes up the difference? The answer is our members.”
More than 90 percent of power generated by North Central’s power supplier, Buckeye Power, comes from coal. In the past 15 years, more than $1 billion in environmental controls has been installed at Buckeye’s coal facilities, and its generating plants are considered among the cleanest coal facilities in the world.
The decision to upgrade their coal-fired plants was made several years before advancements in lower-cost natural gas production were developed.
“My point is very simple. I think every source of energy needs to stand on its own feet and should meet whatever requirements are needed to minimize their impact on the environment. That is the point I made in my last two months’ editorials (in Ohio Cooperative Living magazine), which is the ‘free pass’ that wind and solar get with the myth that they are free of environmental issues.
“This is a real problem in our industry. Everyone wants to have cheap energy, but nobody wants to pay for the physical generating plants necessary to be in place to pay for it, and that’s called capacity. These plants, whether solar or wind, can’t even start or operate without baseload (coal, nuclear, or gas) generation in place.
“The problem in our wholesale markets today is they are tilted in such a way that the owners of those baseload plants are not paid for their investments. That’s why they are going out of business.
“Wind and solar generation should not be allowed to bid into these wholesale markets at a price that includes tax credits or without adding the cost of backup generation for when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing. The risk is at some point we’re going to have a serious reliability problem. People are going to wonder why they don’t have electricity when the wind stops blowing and the sun isn’t shining. The reason is they are unwilling to pay the price to have the baseload plants running 24/7, which is necessary to have reliable power. That’s the facts. Unfortunately, there are very few people in the industry who will tell it to you straight.”
*** Two Seneca County wind projects proposed
There are two wind projects proposed in Seneca County. The Republic Wind Project calls for installation of 58 wind turbines within 30,000 acres in an area that reaches into Sandusky County and extends south of Green Springs, north of Republic, and southwest of Bellevue. It’s been reported by APEX Clean Energy that the project will bring about $38.8 million in landowner payments, $36 million in additional tax revenue for schools, and about $18 million in new revenue for counties and townships over a 30-year period. Apex has an application before the Ohio Power Siting Board.
The Seneca Wind Project covers 25,000 acres and could include 70 wind turbines. This project is in the application phase.
The issue has been hotly debated in Seneca County. Two of the three Seneca County commissioners have supported the projects, along with local school boards.
On the flip side, more than 1,100 people signed a petition asking the Seneca County commissioners to rescind the formation of an Alternative Energy Zone that the county approved in 2011. The petition was presented by leaders of the Seneca-Anti Wind Project Union.