Utilities seek to build solar plants

Natural Gas is cheaper than the sun? That's what Acosta at El Paso Electric says. How can that be?

Steve Myers wrote:

Natural Gas is cheaper than the sun? That's what Acosta at El Paso Electric says. How can that be?

Although it might seem unbelievable that natural gas is cheaper...that is actually true..it is a lot easier to produce electricity by using natural gas rather than solar power..
The actual cheapest way to produce electricity is by nuclear power, however, since pretty much everyone is trying to be "green" no one wants to harm the environment.
El Paso electric even has wind power available to its customers but no one really buys it. Some years back everyone thought that by building a wind power plant that the environment will be protected and maybe even get cheaper electricity. Which is not true, maybe if more consumers purchased the wind power electricity it might be cheaper that natural gas.
However, not many customers purchased it. So it was a waste of money.

People who claim to be green won't be willing to pay the extra cash for the solar power electricity

It won't matter; they'll still raise our rates!

More expensive now but cheaper in the long run is having your home generating it's own power. Solar and/or wind power that charge up those cell batteries and sell the leftover power to the monopolized EP Electric. But that, like everything else, is decades away from this city with a town mentality.

Gsans,
You are only as far away from from home-generated power as you choose to be. The thing that seems to be holding you up is your self-defeating desire to stick it to the electric company you think is sticking it to you. If you don't insist on trying to force the power company to choke on your product, it is actually fairly easy and affordable to generate some of your own power. Lots of ways to do it, you just have to decide how you want to live.
I used to be a submarine reactor operator. Soon, I will build my own power station (not here- plan to move) and start the fun for myself. I have noted often among renewable energy folks that the biggest hangup most of them have is wanting to stick it to the power companies. That is a colossal waste of time and resources (physical tie-ins, legal entanglements, additional control and protection circuits) for what will normally amount to very little gain.
If I can get the right start on my own property in a few years, I plan on starting a RE consulting/installation/mainte nance business. Maybe I can come sell you your own power station in a few years?

Harold wrote:

It won't matter; they'll still raise our rates!

The only reason why they raise the rates is only because they are trying really hard in keeping them low. However, like any utility company they need to make up for their losses some how. If you look at your bill now you will see that there is a "fuel surcharge" which is a percentage that will be charged to all epe customers in Texas to make up for some losses that they had in years past. This fee will go on for an entire year.

EPE hasn't raised prices in ten years or so, but they are trying to make up for some lost money.

There is even a notice being sent together with the bills stating of why there is such a fee. You'll be surprised how many people come in to pay their bill and hand you the entire envelope with the notices and ask you to throw the envelope in the trash without even reading what is in there.

Yes, that's right install solar power to generate electricity, a word of caution, I'd be leery about their claims. The electric company's aim is to charge you more, because, "it's more expensive to produce"!
What a crock, free sunshine and it's more expensive? Just as they did with the wind generated power, at Hueco Tanks, where they just claimed, "it's more expensive to produce", to gouge the users!
What's more expensive about, FREE, wind and sun?
Just how fatuous do these mendacious fools at the electric company think people are?

Monchis wrote:

Yes, that's right install solar power to generate electricity, a word of caution, I'd be leery about their claims. The electric company's aim is to charge you more, because, "it's more expensive to produce"!
What a crock, free sunshine and it's more expensive? Just as they did with the wind generated power, at Hueco Tanks, where they just claimed, "it's more expensive to produce", to gouge the users!
What's more expensive about, FREE, wind and sun?
Just how fatuous do these mendacious fools at the electric company think people are?

It's what these corporate types call ROI. Across the nation energy rates are increasing and sooner or later the ROI will drop and every homeowner will have to decide to put up with increasing energy costs while we head for peak oil and natural gas production. Right now the typical payoff for a large solar system is around 25 years average. The system can put out good power for 40 to 50 years. People seem to have no problem with buying the luxury car or the 1ton 4X4 dually and pay on them for years with only a trade in allowance and another debt to be incurred at the end of the 'auto' cycle. Take this kind of money once and put it on your roof and at least rising power bills will not be a great concern.

Look who's on the board of directors for PNM, and then you'll understand how things get done in EP.