Economic Impact of Minnesota's Renewable Energy Mandate -- Not a Bakken Story

Link here -- a PDF file.

Such a great report, it is linked several places. A big "thank you" to Greg for sending it my way. For more from Greg, see his blog: Four-Fifty Gas, one of my favorite blogs, also linked at the sidebar at the right. Greg contributes regularly to items I would otherwise miss.

Although not a Bakken story, the Minnesota renewable energy mandate has affected energy companies operating in North Dakota.

Because I am traveling and cannot get to everything in a timely manner, "Don" read the report, and sent the following to me, from the report:

Slide 7

Due to their intermittency, wind and solar require significant backup power sources that are cycled up and down to accommodate the variability in the production. Those power sources remain dirty ones. As a result, a recent study found that wind power could actually increases pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.8 Thus the case for heavy uses of wind to generate “cleaner” electricity is undermined.

Slide 8: Conclusion

Minnesota has enacted a series of laws implementing RPS mandates based on the idea of promoting green energy polices. In reality these mandates are mere handouts to favored “green” energy producers. Equally problematic is the lack of transparency between cost and benefit. Not funded directly by higher taxes or debt, the RPS hides its costs in the higher prices to be paid in the future by ratepayers.

Slide  8

Supporters of the Minnesota RPS use a hidden tax approach that fails to undertake any

reasonable cost benefit analysis. The Minnesota RPS puts the state’s robust competitiveness at
risk. The Minnesota business community will most likely will see a reduction in its
competitive advantage over domestic and international competitors.