Many consumers are clamoring for clean, renewable energy. We are working to expand
the options we can offer our customers and help our states meet their clean energy
goals. For example, AEP Ohio's Green Pricing Option program enables customers
to buy Renewable Energy Certificates that represent power purchases of wind, solar
and landfill gas.
Wind power is the fastest growing source of renewable energy, accounting for approximately
one-third of all new generation capacity in the United States last year –
but solar, biomass, geothermal and hydroelectric energy are also in high demand.
Small to mid-sized renewable energy sources are relatively easy to tie into a customer's
facility or the distribution system, but developing large-scale renewable resources
presents significant challenges. We need dramatic improvements in our nation's electrical
infrastructure (i.e., transmission) capabilities if we are to deliver on the American
Wind Energy Association's goal of providing 20 percent of the nation's electricity
from wind. This can be achieved only with major investments in a transmission system
that can deliver wind energy from where it can be generated to where it is needed.
The full potential of adding significant amounts of new large-scale renewable projects
can best be realized through construction of a new, modern interstate extra-high
voltage (EHV) transmission system that could carry the power from where it is produced
to where it can be used. A modern EHV transmission system would also lead to less
wasted energy, fewer emissions and greater access to affordable energy.
