As more businesses and organizations in Alabama and across the nation adopt sustainability and carbon-reduction targets, Alabama Power is working closely with our customers to meet their needs with renewable energy, energy efficiency and demand-side management programs.
Approximately 35 percent of Alabama Power's generation comes from emission-free sources. In fact, Alabama Power began serving customers more than a century ago with emission-free, renewable hydro energy.
Today, with 14 hydroelectric facilities, hydro continues to be an important part of the company's energy mix. In 2021, above-average rainfall allowed for 57% more hydropower generation than projected for the year – one of the largest levels of sustainable hydro production by the company since it began tracking the statistic in 1928. Recent and ongoing upgrades to Alabama Power's hydroelectric facilities ensure that low-cost hydro energy will continue to serve customers in the decades ahead.
With respect to renewable energy generation projects, if Alabama Power generates or receives the associated renewable energy credits (RECs), the company generally reserves the right to use the energy and associated RECs to serve its customers with renewable energy, including through one of the renewable energy programs discussed below, or sell the energy and RECs, either bundled or separately, to third parties for the benefit of the customers.
For years, Alabama Power has been a leading purchaser of wind-generated energy among Southeast utilities. And over the past decade, the company has expanded its use of other renewable energy sources for the benefit of customers.
Alabama Power offers a competitive suite of renewable product offerings to support both existing and new customers in meeting their renewable and sustainability goals.
Alabama Power's REC program connects customers with renewables. Our REC program allows the company to partner with commercial and industrial customers to help meet their renewable goals quickly and in a cost-effective way.
In 2021, Alabama Power collaborated with Protective Life Corporation to power its Birmingham headquarters with 100% renewable energy, using RECs sourced from the Chisholm View Wind Farm in Oklahoma that is under a long-term contract with Alabama Power. Based on this agreement, Protective was recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a Green Power Partner.
"At Protective, we are committed to investing for the future," Scott Adams, Protective's executive vice president, Corporate Responsibility, Strategy and Innovation, said when the project was announced. "We are fortunate to have an innovative company like Alabama Power in our backyard, enabling us to power our headquarters with 100% renewable energy."
Alabama Power also offers the Renewable Subscription Program (RSP) that allows large commercial and industrial customers the opportunity to meet their renewable/sustainability goals by financially supporting utility scale solar projects built in Alabama. Participating customers pay a fixed monthly subscription fee ($/kWh) based on the output of the facility. In return, the customer receives the RECs as well as a monthly energy credit based on Alabama Power's hourly energy rate ($/kWh). In some hours, the rate may exceed the monthly subscription price, resulting in a net credit to the customer in addition to the RECs. This program provides customers with a cost-effective opportunity to support construction of new solar facilities without expending capital or incurring maintenance costs.
RSP is administered under the Alabama Power's Renewable Generation Certificate (RGC) which allows for a customized and expedited certification process for renewable generation so long as the project provides an economic benefit to all ratepayers. Through RSP, Alabama Power has partnered with several customers to deploy solar generation in Alabama.
Meanwhile, Alabama Power continues to work with customers to help them manage, control and reduce energy use. Since 1982, the company's energy efficiency and energy-reduction initiatives have offset the need for over 1,900 megawatts (MWs), which is the equivalent of two midsized power plants.
The company recently received regulatory authorization to pursue an additional 200 MWs of customer-focused demand-side management (DSM) and distributed-energy resource programs. Already, Alabama Power customers are participating in more than 20 DSM programs in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors, as well as two programs managed through the company's Distribution Operations. These initiatives include contracted, active and passive DSM programs.
As Alabama Power's business environment evolves, the company will continue to expand DSM efforts in both energy efficiency and demand response. With the support of advanced technologies, and through education and outreach, Alabama Power is committed to helping customers be more efficient and reduce energy use while improving their productivity.
