I saw a clip recently of the 2016 movie “Sully,” where Tom Hanks plays Captain Sullenberger, who miraculously landed an airplane on the Hudson River after birds struck both engines. In the movie, the National Transportation Safety Board suspected pilot error. Tom Hanks explained how computer simulations were unrealistic and pointedly responded, saying, “Can we get serious now?”
I believe Tom Hanks’ response is spot on for those that continue to advocate for the unrealistic closure of baseload, dispatchable electric generation and replace it with intermittent generation. Can we get serious now?
It’s called intermittent generation for a reason. Wind turbines and solar panels are intermittent sources of power. Renewable generation has a lot of benefits and that is why cooperatives are a leader in renewable energy. Electric co-ops own renewable generation, have contracted for the purchase of power from other renewable generation, and have a lot of members who have installed renewable generation. As I write this in my office at the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, there are solar panels above me on our roof and mounted in our yard.
But there are a lot of times when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine. During those times, we need dispatchable, baseload generation (nuclear, natural gas and coal) to power our lives. For example, peak demand for electric cooperatives is typically between 5 and 8 p.m. Tonight, when our family is making dinner, bathing our three children (hopefully) and doing laundry it will be well after sunset, so there will be no solar generation. Batteries are not large enough or affordable yet. Tonight, dispatchable generation will be critical to keep the power on at our house.
Last year, our country’s electric reliability watchdog, the North America Electric Reliability Corporation, said the No. 1 risk to the reliable operation of our nation’s electric system is energy policy (i.e., legislation that provides incentives and targets for changes in our electricity resources).
On Sept. 18, the Chicago Tribune’s editorial board wrote that an electricity crisis is looming for Illinois and asked if policymakers in Springfield are paying attention. The editorial discussed legislation that became law in 2021 that set closure dates for coal and natural gas-fired power plants, which the industry and others warned will lead to increased costs and jeopardize electric reliability. The editorial board wrote that the industry was right and mentioned that capacity payments for power generators in northern Illinois to produce when demand is highest will surge more than 800% beginning in June 2025.
Your electric cooperative understands that it is currently unrealistic to replace dispatchable generation with intermittent generation. Your cooperative is striving to provide safe, affordable and reliable electricity, and is also a not-for-profit entity. The next time someone advocates for your cooperative to use a certain source of electricity, ask if they have an incentive, financial or otherwise, for doing so. The cooperative is ultimately controlled by you, the member. Members vote for who among them should serve on the board of directors to provide that safe, affordable and reliable electricity.
As the saying goes, when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging. Electric reliability is a serious matter. We must act now, because baseload, dispatchable generation cannot be built overnight. The next time someone advocates to replace it with intermittent resources, ask them, “Can we get serious now?
