Jim Piro, president and CEO of PGE, said: “We’ve engaged customers and stakeholders in an 18-month planning process to help us identify the best way to continue supplying Oregonians with reliable electricity at a reasonable cost. PGE has 120 years of experience in this business, but planning for energy needs over a 20-year horizon into the future is a major challenge. We work hard to weigh all of the costs and risks to achieve the most responsible balance possible for our customers.”
PGE projects that demand for electricity in the area it serves will increase by an average of 2.3% per year or 20% by 2020. PGE’s plan includes a 4-year strategy for acquisition of new resources and a 20-year strategy that outlines long term expectations for the utility’s resource needs and portfolio performance.
The integrated resource planning process, with guidelines established by the Oregon Public Utility Commission, is designed to identify a future portfolio of resources that offers the best combination of cost and risk, taking into account factors such as environmental impacts, fuel supply availability, price volatility, resource diversity, and the ability of available resources to reliably meet demand.
Utilities issue resource plans roughly every two years to reflect new technologies, market conditions, and regulatory requirements.
Jim Lobdell, vice president of power operations and resource strategy at PGE, said: “Our goal is to help Oregonians fulfill their goals for our state’s energy future with a practical plan that tends to the basics as well. We need a plan that we can actually implement, and that will realistically provide the level of service our customers deserve and expect.”
