PECO turns up the heat with Solar RFP

PHILADELPHIA, USA: PECO is looking for current and future solar energy producers to submit bids as the company seeks to purchase 6-megawatts of solar power. The action is part of the company’s overall environmental efforts and supports Pennsylvania’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (AEPS).

PECO recently received approval from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) to purchase up to 80,000 solar alternative energy credits, the equivalent of 6-megawatts, during 10 years. Enough energy to power nearly 1,000 homes for 10 years, it would take about eight football fields of solar panels to produce this energy. Once complete, the company’s purchases could result in the same environmental benefit as planting more than 48,000 acres of trees or not driving more than 133 million miles.

Through a competitive Request for Proposal (RFP) process, PECO will enter into fixed-price agreements with winning bidders to purchase up to a total of 8,000 credits per year for 10 years. PECO expects to enter into the agreements by February 2010, for delivery beginning immediately for existing projects or up to a year for projects under development.

PECO has scheduled a bidder teleconference for Oct. 22 to outline the details of the RFP process and the terms of the agreements. Interested participants who wish to learn more about the bidding process must send an e-mail to AEPS_RFP@peco-energy.com with the subject line ‘AEC Bidder Teleconference’ in order to obtain information on how to participate in this procurement. PECO will release information on the RFP process to interested parties as it becomes available. Additional AEPS RFP information is available online at www.peco.com/aeps.

PECO has retained Navigant Consulting to serve as the independent RFP monitor. The monitor will oversee PECO’s bidder evaluation process, evaluate bid proposals, and report to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) on the results of the RFP process.

The AEPS legislation requires that by 2011, 3.5 percent of the energy consumed by PECO customers be provided through renewable resources such as solar, wind, low-impact hydro, methane, geothermal, biomass or fuel cells. Renewable energy generators sell these credits on a one-to-one basis each time that they produce one megawatt-hour of renewable energy.

In 2008 PECO embarked on the first phase of a five-year major environmental initiative to preserve the environment and help customers become more environmentally responsible. Totaling more than $15.3 million of work, the comprehensive program includes the installation of a green roof and a new Crown Lights system at the company’s Center City headquarters; the opening of PECO’s first ‘green building’ in West Chester, recently awarded silver certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED); improvements to secure LEED certification for many other company work sites; the increased use of hybrid and biodiesel vehicles; support for community environmental projects; and enhanced tools and programs to help customers use energy more efficiently.

These efforts are a component of Exelon 2020: A Low-Carbon Roadmap, the comprehensive environmental strategy of PECO’s parent company. Exelon 2020 sets the goal of reducing, offsetting or displacing more than 15 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year by 2020. This is more than the company’s current annual carbon footprint and is equivalent to taking nearly 3 million cars off American roads and highways.