In 2017, majority owner and operator Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) announced that the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station was too expensive to operate and that the last two of the plant’s four units would be retired in 2022, rather than operating until 2053. On-the-ground communities and advocates had long since called attention to the plant’s expense as well as its damage to health, air and our climate.
In 2019, New Mexico passed the Energy Transition Act (ETA) to build on PNM and Tucson Electric’s closure decision by low-interest bonds to save customers money and provide economic transition funding to plant and mine workers and the community. About $40 million in funding through the Energy Transition Act has ...
Commisison requires PNM to credit customers and issue community funds as soon as San Juan plant closes
The Public Regulation Commission voted 5-0 on June 29 that PNM violated the Energy Transition Act, agreeing with environmental and consumer groups that PNM should not keep charging customers for San Juan Generating Station expenses long after the plant is closed. The commission also required PNM to issue the community and worker funding that would be generated by the Energy Transition bonds as soon as the coal plant closes.
“The ruling means the average PNM customer will see a savings of more than $8 per month, and hundreds of dollars over the next 18 months,” said Ona Porter of Prosperity Works, which advocates ...
Utility agrees to drop hydrogen-blending pilot, cut proposed rate increase in half, advocate for legislation enabling low-income utility rates
For immediate release: May 23, 2022
On Friday, Coalition for Clean Affordable Energy, Western Resource Advocates, PRC staff, the New Mexico attorney general, New Mexico Affordable Reliable Energy Alliance, New Energy Economy, and Incorporated County of Los Alamos reached an agreement with New Mexico Gas Company on its rate case, which had included plans to charge customers for a pilot to blend hydrogen into its gas supply and for compressed-natural-gas (CNG) fueling stations.
The settlement included:
- Agreement that NM Gas will not provide any customers a blend of hydrogen and natural gas without seeking the PRC’s approval in a future ...
