Submitted By
Marcella Bondie Keenan, Chief Sustainability Officer
Reviewed By
A.M. Zayyad, Deputy Village Manager
Agenda Item Title
Title
Presentation and Discussion on Municipal Options for Blending Renewable Energy within Retail Supply and Aggregation Contracts
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Overview
Overview
A presentation from Mark Pruitt, principal of the Power Bureau, the Village’s consultant for services related to the Village's municipal aggregation and renewable energy programs, on options available to municipalities seeking to purchase renewable energy. This report will include options for the municipal aggregation (Community Choice Aggregation) program.
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Anticipated Actions/Commitments
Recommendation
Provide direction to Village staff regarding options to pursue.
Report
This presentation is the second report regarding options for increasing the Village’s procurement of renewable energy. This is in support of the Climate Ready Oak Park commitment to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 60%, and to meet Village facility energy needs by 100% renewable energy, by 2030. As demonstrated in the 2019 greenhouse gas inventory, 70% of community greenhouse gas emissions are generated from building energy. Although ComEd is increasing the amount of renewable energy in its grid, it is not expected to have sufficient renewable resources for the Village to meet its climate action goal by 2030.
Mr. Pruitt previously presented to the board on May 22, 2023 (ID 23-223), as summarized below. Village facilities currently use 9.3 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually, at a cost of $477,000 annually. Additional natural gas energy is also consumed. This is equivalent to a 5.5 MW solar farm (30 - 40 acres), at a capital cost of $5 - $6 Million, which could be constructed from multiple smaller projects over a 2- to 4-year timeframe.
Achieving 100% renewable energy for Village facilities will require continued reliance on the ComEd grid, physical space and time to construct new renewable energy resources, and a financial commitment from the Village to finance the renewable energy development. Prior to investing in renewable energy, Village facilities should be optimized through efficiency measures to reduce daily energy consumption. Federal, State, and local utility incentives could offset the cost of new renewable energy resources by 50% - 80% The payback period for onsite solar is 4 to 7 years. The payback period for offsite renewable energy is 9 to 14 years.
Possible approaches include replacing a portion of ComEd energy through onsite solar at Village facility rooftops and parking lots via direct purchase or Power Purchase Agreement (PPA). Offsite approaches include offsetting the non-renewable energy supplied by ComEd through procurement from utility-scale renewable energy sites located in northeastern Illinois via a Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA) or embedded renewable power purchase supply (PPA).
See the attached presentation for further information regarding the Village’s options for procuring renewable energy.
DEI Impact
Natural gas and other fossil fuels used for building energy create greenhouse gas emissions, which are driving climate change impacts that will be very detrimental to future generations. In Oak Park, building energy accounts for approximately 70% of total community carbon emissions. Shifting to renewable energy eliminates greenhouse gas emissions.
High energy burden (the percent of household income spent on energy bills) is disproportionately borne by people of color, low-income people, renters, and other vulnerable populations (Drebobl et al., “How High Are Household Energy Burdens? An Assessment of National and Metropolitan Energy Burden Across the United States”). In recent months, natural gas costs have approached or exceeded electricity costs in Oak Park, and low-income residents are substantially more energy-burdened (US Dept. of Energy, LEAD tool, Analysis of Oak Park, IL census tracts). Renewable energy, especially under a community solar model, may provide financial relief for energy-burdened households.
Upon receiving Board direction, an engagement and co-design strategy will be developed for community-facing policies and programs, with an emphasis on outreach to highly impacted community members.
Alternatives
Request additional information from staff.