The Lansing Board of Water and Light is releasing a new plan to increase its use of renewable energy.
The BWL has set a goal of delivering 50 percent of its power from clean energy sources in Michigan by 2030.
The utility operates a mix of fossil fuels such as natural gas, and some renewables, including wind and solar.
BWL General Manager Dick Peffley says its new plan calls for carbon neutrality by 2040.
Peffley says the BWL’s sales are down during the pandemic about 15 percent as commercial demand has dropped and residential demand has increased.
“We’re not going to make that up this year by any kind of a rate increase,” he says. “That’s just going to exasperate our customers’ problems. We’ll make that up through efficiencies and budget reductions here, but it will still allow us to move forward on our renewables program.”
Peffley says the BWL is on track to phase out coal by 2025.
Its Eckert Power Station, dominated by its triple smokestacks near downtown Lansing, will go offline at the end of this year.
Editor's Note 07/15/20 5:05 p.m. - This post has been condensed to clarify BWL's energy plan.
