How Holland BPW Plans for the Future of Electricity

Holland BPW takes pride in serving our community with reliable and competitive electric services. We also are committed to providing our essential utility services in a socially, environmentally and financially responsible manner. The electric industry is intricate, and many different factors impact what is needed to carry out this mission in the present and the future.

Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)

Holland BPW is early in the process of a new Integrated Resource Plan. An IRP is a planning tool that looks at forecasts of future energy and demand requirements and identifies options for electric resources that could meet those supply and demand needs. The IRP will be used to evaluate and optimize HBPW’s portfolio of power supply resources—including energy efficiency and demand response—to meet our customer’s electric needs while balancing various critical, but sometimes competing, objectives. For Holland BPW, those critical objectives include system reliability, fiscal responsibility, environmental stewardship, and regulatory compliance. Ultimately, an IRP is intended to aid in the planning of future resources.

IRP analyses are built around scenarios that are based on a multitude of factors and desired outcomes. The new IRP will consider different scenarios. The scenarios will compare the objectives of the Holland Community Energy Plan and the new State of Michigan Renewable and Clean Energy Standard​. This comparison will inform how—and if—the timeline of requirements of the new legislation could be met.

Due to changing factors that influence Holland BPW’s decisions, IRPs need to be conducted every few years. The focus of the current IRP is actions that can be taken in the next 5-10 years to meet the Renewable and Clean Energy Standards. The new standards require transition to 50% renewable energy by 2030, 60% renewable energy and 80% clean energy by 2035, and 100% clean energy by 2040.

After the results of the IRP are complete, Holland BPW will evaluate and begin planning for our community’s future electric demand needs.

Holland Energy Park

How BPW’s Electric Utility Functions

Holland BPW’s electric utility performs two distinct functions: production and distribution. Not every public power community generates its own electricity. Investments in local electric generation have proven successful for Holland BPW in keeping rates competitive, maintaining local control, and providing reliable electric service.

Electric Production: We generate electricity locally at Holland Energy Park and the 48th Street Generation Station. These are not the only sources of electricity for Holland BPW customers. We also get electricity from external resources via our system’s connections to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) electric grid.

Electric Distribution: Electric distribution is the process of bringing electricity to customers. Electricity travels through the distribution system, which is made up of powerlines, substations, and transformers. It goes from Holland BPW’s local generation sources – or the grid – to customers.

Not all electricity is generated locally. MISO, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, plays a pivotal role. MISO is the grid operator for our region, which covers 15 states, reaching as far north as Manitoba, Canada and south to Louisiana. MISO is responsible for making sure that the region always has the right amount of electricity available. They also control the electric capacity markets, plan for grid resiliency, and facilitate buying and selling electrical energy across the grid. This ensures that adequate electricity supply meets the demand at all times, maintaining grid stability and efficiency.

While Holland BPW produces its own electricity using natural gas, the electric utility is able to receive electricity from renewable sources such as wind and solar farms through MISO. Sustainability and environmental considerations play a large role in the IRP process as we work to balance concerns of affordability, sustainability and reliability.

Renewable Energy Certificates

When it comes to utilizing and purchasing renewable energy, there is a process that involves a detailed tracking system facilitated through Renewable Energy Certificates.

When one Megawatt of renewable energy is generated and transmitted to the grid, that generation is verified by a third-party renewable energy certification system and a REC is issued. The REC can be held by the owner or made available to the market where it can be purchased, transferring ownership of the renewable energy attributes.

Holland BPW primarily attains RECs from the resources in our power supply portfolio. To supplement, RECs may also be purchased from the market as needed to satisfy requirements and local sustainability goals.

Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) are a critical tool in the transition to cleaner energy sources. Demand for RECs directly drives the volume of renewable energy that is produced and transmitted to the grid. Because it is impossible to track where electricity comes from or how it was generated, RECs allow electric utilities to verify and claim renewable energy generation as the source of electricity. RECs facilitate the tracking, trading, and certification of renewable energy. They provide the necessary means of verifying that a utility or customer is meeting their renewable energy compliance and sustainability goals.

Holland BPW uses RECs to meet State of Michigan renewable energy requirements. The State of Michigan requires that 15% of the electricity we sell comes from renewable sources. We meet this requirement by retiring RECs on behalf of our customers to meet 15% of electric retail sales. Holland BPW electric customers can increase the amount of renewable energy they purchase through the Elective Renewable Energy program. In addition to the 15% state requirement, Holland BPW retired 18,293 RECs on behalf of customers enrolled in the Elective Renewable Energy program.

When a customer buys renewable electricity from a utility, they are really paying the utility to retire a set number of RECs on their behalf. When a business says it is “powered by 100 percent renewable electricity,” it means that the number of RECs equal to the company’s total power consumption were retired on its behalf.

Holland BPW FY 2024 Resource Mix

Holland BPW has a portfolio of diverse resources that generate our electricity. The mix is balanced to provide reliability while being a good steward of the environment. The data below shows the energy sources Holland BPW used between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024.

We continue to make important strides in the decarbonization of our resource portfolio while maintaining cost effective and reliable services for our customers. You can join us in this work. Sign up for the Electric Renewable Energy Program and receive 50% or 100% of your electricity from renewable sources.

Read the Previous Article

Read the Next Article