NorthWestern Energy has initiated another rate case with the Montana Public Service Commission to increase electric and gas utility rates in its Montana service territory. Included in this request is a 26% increase to base electricity rates, over $2.3 billion in lifetime costs for the Yellowstone County Generating Station (YCGS) methane gas plant, and a blank check for certain near-future investments into the dirty and unreliable Colstrip plant that could well exceed $2 billion. With the hearing beginning on April 22, Montana ratepayers need to know exactly what NorthWestern Energy is asking for.
Join this webinar with experts Michael Goggin of Grid Strategies and Amanda Levin of NRDC, who will give an overview of NorthWestern’s requests before exploring how some of these requests are not supported by the evidence. They will be joined by Becky Xilu Li and Christian Fong of RMI (formally known as Rocky Mountain Institute) who recently published a report that was relied on by one of our experts to show the savings that would accrue to Montanans by closing the Colstrip plant and replacing it with clean energy resources. There will be time for questions.
This event is sponsored by Montana Environmental Information Center, Human Resources Council, and NW Energy Coalition
Join Zoom Meeting:
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Meeting ID: 862 7842 6082
Passcode: 647199
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Meeting ID: 862 7842 6082
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About the experts:
Michael Goggin, Vice President of Grid Strategies
Michael Goggin has been working on clean energy integration and transmission solutions his entire career. For the last decade he held multiple positions at the American Wind Energy Association, including Electric Industry Analyst, Manager of Transmission Policy, and Senior Director of Research. Prior to that he served as a research analyst covering solar, geothermal, and storage technologies for a DOE consulting firm, a renewable policy analyst for the state Public Interest Research Groups, and as the clean energy intern for the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Amanda Levin, Director, Policy Analysis, Science Office of NRDC
Amanda Levin oversees the development of modeling, analyses, and materials for NRDC’s advocacy on climate and clean energy priorities at the state, local, and federal levels. Her work has focused on deep decarbonization modeling, energy policy analysis of both legislative and regulatory action, wholesale and retail energy market design, oil and gas markets, and utility regulatory and ratemaking issues. She previously served as the technical lead for NRDC’s Eastern Energy team, overseeing the development of modeling, analyses, and materials for NRDC’s advocacy in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast.
Becky Xilu Li, Manager, RMI
Becky Xilu Li is a manager with RMI (formally known as Rocky Mountain Institute), an independent nonprofit that transforms global energy systems through market-driven solutions. At RMI, she works closely with regulators, utilities, advocates, and corporations to provide strategic advisory support and technical analysis related to utility transition planning. Her expertise lies in ratepayer cost and financial modeling to assess the impact of policy and financial levers (such as the Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA), and helping stakeholders engage in regulatory venues to achieve reliable and affordable transitions. Becky holds a Master of Public Policy in energy policy from the University of California, Berkeley, and an undergraduate degree in Economics from Renmin University of China.
Christian Fong, Senior Associate, RMI
Christian Fong a senior associate with RMI (formally known as Rocky Mountain Institute), an independent nonprofit that transforms global energy systems through market-driven solutions. At RMI, he strategizes and models how electricity providers can best leverage state and federal tax incentives and financial mechanisms to reduce costs and transition toward clean energy solutions. He also works on interconnection queue solutions that help deploy clean energy in a quicker and most cost-effective manner. Christian holds an undergraduate degree in Environmental Economics and Policy from the University of California, Berkeley.
The Rocky Mountain Institute published a report in January entitled, “Energy Reinvestments in the Intermountain West Can Save Ratepayers Hundreds of Millions.” The report analyzed in detail how the plant owners could take advantage of state and federal policies to replace the Colstrip plant with clean energy resources and save customers between $500 million and $1.1 billion over time.
