HomeMy WebLinkAboutREFAC Minutes 12-18-08 FINAL
Renewable Energy Advisory Committee
Meeting Minutes
December 18, 2008, AEA Board Room
Participants:
Brad Reeve Martina Dabo
Sen. Lyman Hoffman Clinton White
Rep. Bill Thomas Irina Fel
Jim Posey James Jensen
Vince Beltrami David Lockard
Chris Rose Doug Ott
Steve Haagenson Butch White
Bob Swenson Ken Papp
Peter Crimp Mike Mitchell
Jim Strandberg Jodi Mitchell (via phone)
Chris Mello Mark Sinclair (via phone)
Sara Fisher-Goad Kaci Schroeder Hotch (via phone)
Mike Harper
MOTION: Mr. Posey moved to approve the Meeting Minutes from the November 25,
2008 Renewable Energy Fund Advisory Committee meeting. Seconded by Rep.
Thomas. A voice vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously.
It is necessary to think of other criteria in regards to statewide balance; right now it
appears that politically speaking, it is the Railbelt vs. Rural Alaska. The focus needs to
be on giving more weight to projects in areas of Alaska where energy prices are the
highest. A project from the Railbelt could be included to passify the Railbelt. The
Committee agrees to trust AEA (Alaska Energy Authority) staff to make the decisions
and to recommend projects based on need; fund what they can and leave out the
politics.
The Renewable Energy Fund should be seen as a 10-year program, rather than two
years and AEA staff and services should be evaluated for what will be necessary for the
long-term. Right now there is concern that there won’t be enough engineers and
expertise available to help guide the communities through the next step of this process.
With the approval of these projects, there will be a higher demand on AEA’s staff to
manage the grants and also a higher demand for engineering services around the state.
It’s also important to recommend projects that are ready for construction. There is a
strong need to have at least some viable feasibility studies, however, no more than 20%
of the recommended projects to be funded should be feasibility studies.
An IRP (Integrated Resource Plan) process is a very good idea regionally in Alaska and
for the Railbelt, though it may be difficult to implement with some utilities against the
process. AEA and RCA (Regulatory Commission of Alaska) need to have a close
relationship.
Mark Sinclair added that Congress is looking to distribute federal money to states with a
clean energy program. Need to promote Alaska for federal funds and speak with
Alaska’s congregational delegation. Developing an R&D (Research and Development)
fund is important in helping Alaska be eligible for other Federal funds. AEA staff has
gathered a list of projects ready for construction in 2009 from the proposals that came in
from Rounds I and II. This list has been given to Alaska’s congregational delegation.
The first $100 million of the Renewable Energy Fund is already appropriated, with the
subsequent $50 million per year subject to approval and appropriation by the
Legislature. Project recommendations will be brought to the LB&A (Legislative Budget
and Audit) Committee and they have 45 days to make a decision on the
recommendations. If no decision is made by LB&A by the end of the 45 days, AEA may
proceed with their recommendations.
The next meeting will be scheduled for a full day on January 12, 2009, beginning at
9am.