New Mexico utility issues RFP for new energy projects, including geothermal option
Animas, New Mexico (source: flickr/ BAlvarius, creative commons)
Alexander Richter
28 Nov 2012
New Mexico's largest utility PNM has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for renewable energy projects, including geothermal, to fulfill its renewable requirements for the coming years.
Reported today from New Mexico, the state’s largest utility PNM is looking for “multiple proposals for wind, solar, hydropower, geothermal and bio-fuel that can be available no later than 2015. The utility needs to meet its 2015 renewable energy goals and therefore has issued this new request for proposals.
The requirement is for 375 MW of new renewable energy per year to be supplied through IPP owned projects.
For now the state plan requires that 10 percent of PNM energy to come from renewables by 2015. The utility believes it can achieve this goal in 2013 and 2014. But the increase to 15 percent by 2015 and 20 percent by 2020 remains a challenge.
So the utility faces the same issues as other utilities in other states, as it needs to make sure to provide a constant supply of power with a certain provision of baseload power.
The deadline for proposals is January 31, 2013 and the utility will hold a pre-bid conference on December 10, 2012.
Source: New Mexico Business Weekly
