The Lake Side natural gas power plant in Vineyard is pictured on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)
Republicans in the Utah Legislature have among their top goals to make the state the energy capital of the country, and even the world. This legislative session, they are expecting to lay part of the foundation to make it happen, looking at nuclear energy and partnering with other red states to trace energy strategies.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has heard talks of about 30 energy-related bills next session. It’s a priority for him and his counterparts in other states, he told Utah News Dispatch. It comes after Cox last year unveiled a plan to double the state’s energy production, and allocated $20 million to “lay the groundwork for deploying nuclear power generation in Utah” in his budget recommendation, plus $4.3 million for geothermal.
The Legislature is building up from a collection of energy bills it passed last year, as well, said House Speaker Mike Schultz, R-Hooper. That, despite hearing comments criticizing the emphasis on coal resources and distancing from a growing clean energy market.
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“We got a lot of criticism last year as a legislature,” Schultz said. “And it was unfair criticism because Utah was ahead of it.”
Utah’s plan isn’t only about protecting and saving its coal plants, he said. It’s an all-of-the-above approach which will include nuclear technologies, especially now that the country’s interest in it has grown.
Cox announces plans to double energy production in Utah starting next legislative session
Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, also has big plans for nuclear energy. He hopes the federal government suspends some of its regulations so the state is able to build nuclear plants.
Another high priority for the majority caucus is to ensure the state is able to mine and produce critical minerals, Adams said.
“We need to wake up in the fact that we need to be able to produce the critical minerals and the energy that we need to be able to be self-sufficient and not dependent on other nations. And I believe it is a severe, critical national security issue,” Adams said.
Not all details on energy strategy bills are public yet, however, elected officials have started to write legislation that may change how Rocky Mountain Power, the state’s largest electricity supplier, funds its operations.
“We’re going to be focused on, one, making sure the lights come on,” Schultz said. “Two, making sure they come on at a lower price, at a fair price.”
How all-of-the-above look like for Democrats
Those goals of diversifying Utah’s energy portfolio and keeping prices low for constituents are also on the agenda of Senate Minority Leader Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City. However, she would like to see more clean energy production in the state, and help reaching milestones of federal sustainability plans that call for 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2030.
“I know under the (Trump) administration, we may see a shift on that. We recognize that. So we still want to continue working towards a more green energy 2030 goal,” Escamilla said. “And then make sure that if we’re investing on big infrastructure, that we’re investing in a smart way on more green alternative energy.”
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While House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City, also agrees that Utah should have a diverse energy portfolio, all of the incentives to develop nuclear power make her question how the state’s energy generation would affect its air quality.
“We have to be mindful of future generations, and we have to be mindful of the Great Salt Lake, and we have to be mindful about what resources we are going to use, and how it impacts the air we breathe,” she said.
Romero also wonders how Utah will sustain the water requirements for those facilities, since, according to the University of Michigan, nuclear power plants use 270 to 670 gallons of water per megawatt hour.
Among her concerns is also the state’s ability to carry energy from cleaner sources within the state’s transmission lines.
“In order to look at the different energy resources, we also need to look at those transmission lines to make sure we have that infrastructure and it matches the growth of our state,” she said.
PacifiCorp split proposal
Last year, the Legislature asked PacifiCorp, Rocky Mountain Power’s parent company, to study the possibility of splitting into two entities — one serving California, Washington and Oregon, all blue states that have prioritized clean energy initiatives; and one joining efforts between Utah, Idaho and Wyoming.
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“Rocky Mountain Power has been trying to drive up the cost here in Utah because of policies in California, Oregon and Washington, and that’s not fair to the citizens of Utah,” Schultz said. “And not just drive up the cost a little bit. We’re talking huge amounts.”
For Adams, the split is more about joining forces with states with similar policies to produce power. For example, Utah is in discussions with Wyoming about a potential partnership on its nuclear projects, he said. And, Idaho is very supportive, too.
That partnership may extend to other critical Western issues, Adams said, including water.
“That’s kind of a new policy. We’ve always tried to solve our problems from within. What we’re trying to do now is join with those other states,” he said. “And so when you talk about the bifurcation of Rocky Mountain Power it … has a bigger implication than just bifurcation.”
Electricity rates
While the splitting conversation is still in its early stages, a potential 18% increase of residential electricity rates ruffled the feathers of many elected officials, including Cox and many Republican legislators. And they are considering removing at least one benefit the utility has had for almost a decade.
Rocky Mountain Power lowers its rate increase proposal to 18.1%, down from 30.5%
In an interim committee hearing last November, Rep. Carl Albrecht, R-Richfield, introduced a bill that, if approved, would eliminate how Rocky Mountain Power funds its Energy Balancing Account. That account is a market adjustment fee that can either credit or debit ratepayers for the utility’s costs not covered by the regular electricity rates.
Legislation sponsored by Adams in 2016 allowed electrical corporations to recover 100% of their “prudently incurred costs in an energy balancing account.” Before that, customers covered 70% of the adjustment and shareholders absorbed 30% of it.
The system established in 2016, Adams said, helped Rocky Mountain Power to balance production costs over time, and provided them with stability and better rates. However, he said he would support studying the House proposal.
“I actually think that we ought to evaluate it, get the data out, find out how it’s been used, and whether it’s doing what it said it would,” Adams said.” Because I think in some cases it does. Other cases it doesn’t.”
Utah News Dispatch senior reporter Katie McKellar contributed to this report.
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