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Michigan Public Power Agency official briefs Bay City commissioners on grid reliability and renewable targets
Summary
Pat Bolen, general manager and CEO of the Michigan Public Power Agency, told the Bay City City Commission on Feb. 17 that members must balance renewable goals with reliability, and described MPPA’s role in pooling resources and managing market risk for municipal utilities.
Pat Bolen, general manager and CEO of the Michigan Public Power Agency, briefed the Bay City City Commission on Feb. 17 about the agency’s role and the reliability challenges facing municipal electric utilities.
Bolen told commissioners that MPPA exists to give city-owned utilities economies of scale and to spread financial and operational risk across member utilities. “The idea really is to update each of our members on what is actually happening with the electricity marketplace and the industry itself, which is under profound change,” Bolen said.
The presentation outlined MPPA’s structure and membership: Bolen said the agency formed after Michigan’s Public Act 448 in 1976 and now represents 22 members serving roughly 300,000 customers. He described MPPA as a project-based joint action agency that helps members acquire power, manage volatility and hire specialized staff they could not afford individually.
Why it matters: Bolen warned commissioners that increasing the share of intermittent renewables creates a need for more “reliability-based” resources because the grid must be able to meet demand every hour of the year. He said MPPA’s near-term priorities are resource adequacy, financial stability, transmission upkeep and staffing to model and manage a higher share of renewables without sacrificing reliability.
Discussion highlights
- Renewable and clean-energy targets: Bolen reviewed recently passed state energy legislation and said it contains ambitious clean-energy goals that apply to all load-serving entities in Michigan. He explained there are statutory requirements and potential “off-ramps” administered by the Michigan Public Service Commission for some compliance deadlines. “All load serving entities, all utilities are wrapped under that legislation,” Bolen said.
- Local planning tools: Commissioner Tenney asked plainly how Bay City would move from roughly 23% renewable today to a 50% target by 2029. Bolen said the city should pursue multiple tools — buying renewable attributes, utility-scale projects, and energy-storage and peaking resources — but also cautioned the economics and interconnection constraints make fast progress difficult. “It’s gonna be very difficult to achieve, and we’re hoping that the economics today as well, I think are too high,” he said.
- Energy storage and peaking needs: Bolen said MPPA is evaluating battery energy storage systems and larger projects on the transmission grid but noted current battery tariffs and four-hour duration standards limit batteries’ ability to serve as long-duration reliability resources today. He also said natural-gas peaking units remain an important short-term tool to maintain reliability as coal plants retire.
- Local representation and costs: Commissioners asked about membership costs. Bolen said members pay a pro rata share of MPPA’s overhead, staff and outside services; he described the membership model as a way for smaller utilities to afford technical expertise.
Ending
Bolen closed by urging local governing bodies to stay engaged, because utility supply decisions are increasingly complex and elected officials and staff must understand tradeoffs between cost, reliability and policy targets. Commissioners thanked Bolen and had additional follow-up questions for city utility staff after the presentation.
