HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - COMPLETE AGENDA - 05/08/2018 - COMPLETE AGENDACity of Fort Collins Page 1
Wade Troxell, Mayor City Council Chambers
Gerry Horak, District 6, Mayor Pro Tem City Hall West
Bob Overbeck, District 1 300 LaPorte Avenue
Ray Martinez, District 2 Fort Collins, Colorado
Ken Summers, District 3
Kristin Stephens, District 4 Cablecast on FCTV Channel 14
Ross Cunniff, District 5 and Channel 881 on the Comcast cable system
Carrie Daggett Darin Atteberry Delynn Coldiron
City Attorney City Manager City Clerk
Adjourned Meeting
May 8, 2018
6:00 p.m.
(amended 5/7/18)
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CALL MEETING TO ORDER
ROLL CALL
1. Resolution 2018-045 Making Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law Regarding the Appeal of the
Hearing Officer's Type 1 Administrative Decision Approving the Spirit at the River Project Development
Plan, PDP 17-0026 With Additional Conditions. (staff: Clay Frickey, Tom Leeson; no staff
presentation; 5 minute discussion)
The purpose of this item is to make Findings of Fact and Conclusions regarding the appeal of the
Hearing Officer decision to approve the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan. The appeal was
heard by City Council on May 1, 2018.
City of Fort Collins Page 2
OTHER BUSINESS
A. Consideration of a motion to adjourn into executive session to consider legal issues related to the
Northern Integrated Supply Project.
ADJOURNMENT
Agenda Item 1
Item # 1 Page 1
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY May 8, 2018
City Council
STAFF
Clay Frickey, City Planner
Chris Van Hall, Legal
SUBJECT
Resolution 2018-045 Making Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law Regarding the Appeal of the Hearing
Officer's Type 1 Administrative Decision Approving the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan, PDP 17-
0026 With Additional Conditions.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this item is to make Findings of Fact and Conclusions regarding the appeal of the Hearing
Officer decision to approve the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan. The appeal was heard by City
Council on May 1, 2018.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
On February 7, 2018, a Hearing Officer approved the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan (PDP). On
February 20, 2018, a Council member filed an appeal with the following questions:
• How does the site plan comply with Land Use Code Section 3.4.1 in general, including but not limited to
compliance with Section 3.4.1(E)(1), “…the decision maker shall reduce or enlarge any portion of the
general buffer zone distance, if necessary in order to ensure that the performance standards set forth
below are achieved” and the associated buffer zone table which calls out the relevant buffer as “Cache la
Poudre River (Lincoln Avenue to east UGA boundary): 300 feet” given that the actual designed buffer
ranges from 176 to 244 feet, with an average of 201 feet?
• How does the height/mass of the building comply with Land Use Code Section 4.20(D)(3)(a)(1), which
specifies, “The maximum building height shall be three (3) stories”?
• How does the parking modification comply with Land Use Code Section 4.20(D)(3)(a)(2), which specifies
that new parking lots and vehicle use areas shall be located in either interior block locations between
buildings or in side yards?
On May 1, 2018, City Council considered the appeal allegations and testimony from parties in interest. Council
discussed all specific questions raised in the appeal.
City Council upheld and modified the Hearing Officer’s decision as follows:
• Council upheld the Hearing Officer’s approval of the modification of standards to allow portions of the
building to include four (4) stories.
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Agenda Item 1
Item # 1 Page 2
• Council upheld the Hearing Officer’s approval of the modification of standards to provide for a drive aisle
loop around the building, including a limited amount of parking and drive aisle behind the parking, with the
additional condition that the Applicant work with staff to consider additional modifications to the site to
reduce headlights shining into the adjacent buffer area.
• Council upheld the Hearing Officer’s approval of the natural area buffer, subject to the two conditions
imposed by the Hearing Officer, with the additional condition that the height of the berm at the southern
edge of the drive aisle be modified to be at least 4’ in height and maintain at least a 4:1 slope and that the
Applicant work with staff to develop an improved landscape plan to increase plantings in the buffer zone.
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RESOLUTION 2018-045
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
MAKING FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW REGARDING
THE APPEAL OF THE HEARING OFFICER’S TYPE I ADMINISTRATIVE
DECISION APPROVING THE SPIRIT AT THE RIVER PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
PLAN, PDP17-0026 WITH ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS
WHEREAS, on February 7, 2018, Hearing Officer Kendra L. Carberry (“Hearing
Officer”) approved the Type 1 administrative decision for Spirit at the River, Project
Development Plan, PDP17-0026 with two conditions (the “Decision”); and
WHEREAS, on May 1, 2018, Councilmember Ross Cunniff filed a Notice of Appeal of
the Decision with the City Clerk in accordance with City Code Section 2-46; and
WHEREAS, the Notice of Appeal requested that City Council consider questions
essentially related to whether the Decision properly interested and applied certain portions of the
Land Use Code in rendering the Decision, which questions can be summarized as: (1) how does
the site comply with Land Use Code (LUC) 3.4.1 regarding natural area buffers; (2) how does
the height/mass of the building comply with LUC 4.20(D)(3)(a)(1); and (3) how does the parking
modification comply with LUC 4.20(D)(3)(a)(2) regarding parking lot location; and
WHEREAS, based upon Councilmember Cunniff’s Notice of Appeal and pursuant to
City Code Section 2-48(c), the Director of Planning, Development, and Transportation identified
the Land Use Code provisions applicable to the Appeal; and
WHEREAS, on May 1, 2018, the City Council, after notice given in accordance with
Chapter 2, Article II, Division 3, of the City Code, held a public hearing and considered the
Appeal, reviewed the record on appeal and the applicable Land Use Code provisions, and heard
presentations from the representative for Spirit at the River and other parties-in-interest (the
“Council Hearing”); and
WHEREAS, after discussion, the City Council found and concluded, based on the
evidence in the record and presented at the Council Hearing, to uphold and approve the Decision,
subject to certain additional conditions related to the Poudre River buffer zone and other buffer
areas adjacent to the Spirit at the River project; and
WHEREAS, City Code Section 2-55(g) provides that no later than the date of its next
regular meeting after the hearing of an appeal, City Council shall adopt, by resolution, findings
of fact in support of its decision on the Appeal.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
FORT COLLINS that, pursuant to Section 2-55(g) of the City Code, the City council hereby
makes and adopts the following findings of fact and conclusions:
1. That the Notice of Appeal conformed to the requirements of Section 2-48 of the City
Code.
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2. That based on the evidence in the record and presented at the Council Hearing, the
recitals set forth above are adopted as findings of fact.
3. That based on the evidence in the record and presented at the Council Hearing, the
Decision is hereby upheld and modified in accordance with the following:
a. The Hearing Officer’s Decision approving the modification of standards
included in the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan 170026 to allow
portions of the building to include four (4) stories meets at least one of the
criteria set forth in LUC §2.8.2(H)(1)-(4) and is not detrimental to the public
good and for the reasons articulated by the Hearing Officer with no additional
conditions or modifications.
b. The Hearing Officer’s Decision approving the modifications of standards
included in the Spirit at the River Project Development Plan 170025 to
provide for a drive aisle loop around the building, including a limited amount
of parking and drive aisle behind the parking, meets at least one of the criteria
set forth in LUC §2.8.2(H)(1)-(4) and is not detrimental to the public good for
the reasons articulated by the Hearing Officer, and with additional
consideration of the need to reduce headlight intrusion on the neighboring
buffer area from the west parking spaces, Council imposes the following
additional condition:
i. Applicant shall work with staff to consider additional modifications to
the site to reduce headlights shining into the adjacent buffer area.
c. The Hearing Officer’s Decision approving the natural area buffer, subject to
the two conditions imposed by the Hearing Officer, meets the performance
standards of LUC §3.4.1(E)(1)(a)-(i) for the reasons articulated by the Hearing
Officer, and with additional consideration of the need to reduce headlight and
noise intrusion on the Poudre River buffer zone, Council imposes the
following additional condition:
i. The height of the berm at the southern edge of the drive aisle shall be
modified to the maximum height that will maintain a slope of four to
one, with a minimum height of 4 feet, and that plantings in the buffer
zone shall be increased based on an improved landscape plan
developed in cooperation with Planning staff.
4. That adoption of this Resolution shall constitute the final action of the City Council in
accordance with City Code Section 2-55(g).
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Passed and adopted at an adjourned meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins
this 8th day of May, A.D. 2018.
__________________________________
Mayor
ATTEST:
_____________________________
City Clerk
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City of Fort Collins Page 1
Wade Troxell, Mayor Council Information Center (CIC)
Gerry Horak, District 6, Mayor Pro Tem City Hall West
Bob Overbeck, District 1 300 LaPorte Avenue
Ray Martinez, District 2 Fort Collins, Colorado
Ken Summers, District 3
Kristin Stephens, District 4 Cablecast on FCTV Channel 14
Ross Cunniff, District 5 and Channel 881 on the Comcast cable system
Carrie Daggett Darin Atteberry Delynn Coldiron
City Attorney City Manager City Clerk
The City of Fort Collins will make reasonable accommodations for access to City services, programs, and activities
and will make special communication arrangements for persons with disabilities. Please call 221-6515 (V/TDD: Dial
711 for Relay Colorado) for assistance.
City Council Work Session
May 8, 2018
After the Adjourned Council Meeting, which begins at 6:00 p.m.
• CALL TO ORDER.
1. Climate Action Plan and 100% Renewable Electricity Update. (staff: Lindsay Ex, Jeff Mihelich, Tim
McCollough; 15 minute staff presentation; 45 minute discussion)
The purpose of this work session is three-fold:
• Provide an update on the implementation of the City’s Climate Action goals, including the preliminary
2017 community carbon inventory, updated projections, highlights from 2017 in the various sectors
(electricity, natural gas, transportation, and waste materials), and innovations on the journey to
carbon neutrality;
• Highlight market demand and customer requests to provide an option for 100% renewable electricity;
and
• Review overall next steps, including community engagement efforts planned for 2018.
2. Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models. (staff: John Phelan; 15 minute staff
presentation; 45 minute discussion)
The purpose of this work session is to provide an update on the adoption of local solar generation, to
present information regarding the opportunities and challenges on increasing levels of local solar and
to seek feedback from Council on the development of future goals and policies.
• OTHER BUSINESS.
• ADJOURNMENT.
DATE:
STAFF:
May 8, 2018
Lindsay Ex, Environmental Program Manager
Jeff Mihelich, Deputy City Manager
Tim McCollough, Light and Power Operations Manager
WORK SESSION ITEM
City Council
SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION
Climate Action Plan and 100% Renewable Electricity Update.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this work session is three-fold:
• Provide an update on the implementation of the City’s Climate Action goals, including the preliminary
2017 community carbon inventory, updated projections, highlights from 2017 in the various sectors
(electricity, natural gas, transportation, and waste materials), and innovations on the journey to carbon
neutrality;
• Highlight market demand and customer requests to provide an option for 100% renewable electricity; and
• Review overall next steps, including community engagement efforts planned for 2018.
GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED
This item is part of an annual update to Council; no questions are proposed.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
Overall Summary and Progress since the Goals were Adopted in 2015
In 2015, Council unanimously adopted updated community greenhouse gas goals:
• 20% below 2005 levels by 2020,
• 80% below 2005 by 2030, and
• Carbon neutrality by the year 2050.
Preliminary 2017 Community Carbon Inventory Results
What it is. To measure progress toward these goals, the City conducts an annual carbon inventory to calculate
emissions across the sectors that influence our climate action goals - electricity, natural gas, transportation, waste
materials, and water. While the type of emission varies across sectors, e.g., cooking and heating emits carbon
dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) while waste sent to landfills emits just methane (CH4), all
of these emissions are normalized to a “carbon dioxide equivalent” (referred to as CO2e) so they can be
compared and evaluated systematically.
Preliminary Results. Since the goals were adopted in 2015, the community has made significant progress. The
2017 inventory shows the community is at 17% below 2005 levels - just 3% from its 2020 goal! In addition, per
capita emissions are down by 35% from 2005. The results of the inventory are further described in Attachment 2.
More than Just Carbon. Addressing climate action brings significant benefit to the community, including the
following results:
• Results from the 2017 efficiency programs show energy savings equivalent to over 3,750 homes in our
community (over 28,600 megawatt-hours) generating in excess of $38 million in local economic benefits
through reduced utility bills, direct rebates and leveraged investment,
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• Fort Collins businesses are saving more than $9.8M annually from improved efficiencies,
• ClimateWise is Fort Collins’ free, voluntary program that offers simple solutions to help businesses reduce
their impact, save money and gain recognition for their achievements in energy and water conservation,
waste reduction, alternative transportation and social responsibility. In 2017, ClimateWise Partners
realized $460,289 in annual savings by implementing cost-effective strategies to be more efficient and
reduce operating costs, all while reducing emissions by almost 16,000 metric tons of CO2e.
• Solar installations continued at a rapid pace, and the community passed the 10MW threshold for locally
installed solar capacity in 2017. Over the last 10 years, Fort Collins has seen a 100% annual average
increase of installed solar capacity.
• Partnered with the Platte River Power Authority member communities to secure a Power Purchase
Agreement for 150 MW of wind that is expected to have no impact on our existing low wholesale power
costs and positively impact the inventory by up to 10%.
• Increased the waste diverted from the landfill in 2017 (over 2016) by almost 5%;
• Launched City Plan, Transportation Master Plan, and the Transit Plan update which includes a focus on
climate action and will guide the community’s land use patterns over the next 20-30 years.
• Decreased per capita per day water use by 10% since 2016.
Affecting Climate Action - It’s About Energy (Electricity and Natural Gas), Transportation, Waste
Materials, and Water
Summary: While climate action is a broad term, in Fort Collins, it means increasing the efficiency and cleaning up
the sources we use to fuel the electricity in our homes and businesses, the heat in our buildings (natural gas), the
way we travel (transportation), the management of the materials we consume, and our water use.
In other words, climate action is focused on alignment and implementation of the following citywide efforts:
• Energy Policy and our partnership with Platte River Power Authority (Integrated Resource Plan);
• City Plan, Transportation Master Plan, and Transit Plan;
• Road to Zero Waste and Regional Wasteshed Planning effort;
• Water Supply and Demand Management Plan and the Water Efficiency Plan.
The following sections describe the 2017 emissions and opportunities as we look toward the future of each
resource area - electricity, natural gas, transportation, waste materials and water - addressed in the climate action
plan.
Electricity - 2017 Emissions Update and Opportunities Looking Ahead
Electricity Emissions: Electricity remains the single largest contributor to the community’s emissions at 51%.
However, electricity emissions were 16% lower in 2017 than in the 2005 baseline. This is primarily due to an
increase in the amount of renewable energy in the resource mix. Efficiency continues to largely offset growth in
electricity use as the population and economy grow over time.
Opportunities in the Electricity Sector: In just a few years since the goals were adopted, significant
transformations and opportunities have been harnessed in the electricity sector - both at the utility scale and more
locally.
Utility Scale Planning. In May 2016, the Platte River Board of Directors approved a project titled the Customized
Resource Plan (CRP). Fort Collins, Loveland, Longmont and Estes Park each expressed interest in having
specific types of generation to serve their customers, and each municipality had its own distinct long-term goals.
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The overall goal of the CRP project was to develop a range of alternatives, to provide sound advice and to
provide opportunities for municipalities to consider for increasing renewable electricity percentages in their
portfolios. There were two phases in CRP planning process.
Completed in early 2017, the CRP Phase 1 was comprised of initial modeling to establish the cost landscape of
potential customized resource plans. It was intended for the later phase of the project to focus on a subset of the
most effective plans chosen for further analysis.
In July 2017, Platte River’s Board of Directors shifted focus from the CRP and approved a study focused on
modeling a 100% non-carbon resource scenario for all four municipalities. Platte River retained Pace Global, a
Siemens business, to provide an independent assessment of the feasibility of Platte River achieving and
maintaining a Zero Net Carbon (ZNC, or carbon-neutral) generation supply portfolio by 2030. This study was
primarily designed to assess the production costs of a ZNC portfolio and aid in future planning decisions for Platte
River and its member-owners.
There is a distinct difference between Zero Carbon Portfolios and Zero Net Carbon (ZNC) or carbon neutral
portfolios:
• A Zero Carbon Portfolio is a portfolio where energy is produced and delivered to end-users with
generation sources that yield no carbon output. Resources such as wind, solar, and battery storage would
comprise this type of system. This system would accommodate no market (carbon-producing) purchases
and would operate largely in isolation of the regional grid.
• A Zero Net Carbon (ZNC) portfolio is a portfolio consisting of excess carbon-free (or lower carbon)
generation that, when sold in a market, can offset carbon produced by fossil fuel-fired generation,
producing zero net carbon or carbon neutrality. Carbon offset is an action or activity that compensates for
the emission of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
Overall, the ZNC study was a positive first step toward demonstrating the feasibility of a carbon-free portfolio. The
study found that ZNC could be implemented, but it would require investment and additional market risk. In the
ZNC model, Platte River would serve about 75% of load with zero carbon generation and would offset the
remaining 25% with sales of zero carbon generation to the market. A zero carbon (rather than zero net carbon)
portfolio would be more expensive due to the added cost of storage and the limited capacity credit attributable to
intermittent resources (more renewables and batteries would be required). Higher electric rates would be required
to achieve a ZNC portfolio in 2030 as compared to the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) base case portfolio.
The Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) is a comprehensive document that details Platte River’s plans in the areas of
generation and transmission projects, renewable energy, and energy efficiency for the next 3-5 years. Many of the
assumptions in the previous edition of the ’Platte Rivers IRP (2016) <https://www.prpa.org/wp-
content/uploads/2016/08/06-01-IRP-final-report-2016.pdf> represent a view of conditions as they stood when it
was written. Many of the assumptions presented have changed such as the announcement of the retirement of
the Craig 1 power plant in 2025 and the addition of 150 MW of wind in 2020 to Platte River’s generation portfolio.
In March 2018, Platte River announced they will be moving into the next phase of resource planning
efforts with updating their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) a year ahead of schedule. Normally produced
every five years, the IRP is a critical tool for ensuring an adequate supply of reliable, low-cost, and
environmentally-responsible electricity.
The IRP process usually takes about three years to complete and publish. The IRP will be driven by Platte River’s
foundational pillars of system reliability, environmental responsibility and financial sustainability. Platte River will
focus on building a long-term diversified portfolio by:
• Formalizing long-term goals for carbon reduction that meet the mutual needs of the municipal owners.
• Adding cost-advantageous renewable power
• Conducting a battery storage demonstration project
• Accelerating distributed resource options
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• Finding savings to keep current baseload resources competitive in a broader marketplace
• Identifying market options to reduce long-term reliance on coal resources
Utility Scale Opportunities. In January 2018, Platte River Power Authority signed a power purchase agreement
(PPA) for 150 megawatts of new wind power capacity. The additional wind power will come from a new wind
farm located less than 20 miles north of Platte River’s Rawhide Energy Station. Enyo Renewable Energy’s
subsidiary, Roundhouse Renewable Energy LLC, will construct the Roundhouse project with up to 75 wind
turbines across 14,000 acres of land as well as the additional transmission capacity needed to bring the wind
energy directly to Platte River’s system. The new transmission line will connect the wind power directly to Platte
River’s transmission system at the Rawhide Station and will nearly triple Platte River’s existing output from wind.
In February 2018, Platte River Power Authority issued a request for proposals (RFP) for at least 20 megawatts
of new solar energy capacity that could be added to its system, which serves Estes Park, Fort Collins,
Longmont and Loveland. For comparison, 20 MW of solar is equivalent to approximately 31 Riverside solar
gardens (the garden at the corner of Riverside and Mulberry). The RFP also called for up to five (5) megawatt-
hours of energy storage capacity. The solar project could be built and operational between June 2019 and the
end of 2021.
In addition to these specific opportunities, multiple large customers have sent letters of support to request that
Fort Collin’s Utilities and Platte River Power Authority develop corporate rate tariffs to meet new and ongoing
large customer demands for 100% Renewable Electricity. Many of these customers have specific
organizational or corporate goals around renewable electricity and therefore have requested a new rate and tariff
be developed to help them achieve their goals.
In addition to 100% Renewable Electricity, these corporations and organizations generally are requesting this
future product to provide choice in specific generation products that are cost competitive under long term
contracts. They also desire this energy to be provided by new projects in close proximity. Many of these buyers
point to the Corporate Renewable Energy Buyers’ Principles (<http://buyersprinciples.org/>) as describing their
collective desires.
Platte River is in the process of evaluating its current tariff structure, including a new renewable tariff. Platte River
has committed to work collaboratively with Fort Collins and our large customers to create a transparent tariff
structure to achieve mutual goals.
Local Opportunities in the Electricity Sector. In 2017, efficiency programs saved over 28 gigawatt-hours,
equivalent to the electricity use of 3750 typical Fort Collins homes. A third-party evaluation of the portfolio of
efficiency programs confirmed the reported savings and documented a benefit cost ratio of 1.8. Another milestone
crossed in 2017 was reaching a locally installed solar capacity of 10 megawatts. Of the over 1000 solar systems
now active on Fort Collins distribution system, over one fourth were installed in the last twelve months.
New opportunities for impacting electricity use and associated carbon emissions are also in the works. Time of
Day residential electricity rates will start in October 2018, and are expected to reduce residential usage by over
two percent. This rate structure will also encourage increased engagement with customers with managing their
use and is a clear financial signal to encourage electric vehicle ownership.
Research activities related to the electric system include:
• A battery storage demonstration project to support understanding a range of use cases for commercial
and residential integration of solar plus battery storage, including technical requirements, interconnection
details, dispatchable options, price responsiveness, programmatic needs and policy objectives.
• A partnership with Colorado State University, funded by the National Science Foundation, to develop a
complete model of the distribution grid. This model will enable scenario planning for increasing levels of
renewable energy and storage.
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• A pilot project leveraging the existing demand response infrastructure to allow Platte River to gain
operational experience with demand response managed for the benefit of the entire system.
• A partnership between Fort Collins Utilities, Poudre School District and Colorado State University, to
develop a network of solar data sensors to estimate and model community wide near real time solar
output while providing research and STEM opportunities for students.
Natural Gas - 2017 Emissions Update and Opportunities Looking Ahead
Natural Gas Emissions: Natural gas makes up 21% of the community’s emissions. Natural gas emissions have
increased from 2005 baseline levels by 7% and increased by 2% from 2016. Population increase is one of the key
drivers of increased emissions, i.e., more buildings heating via natural gas, though the rate of increase has
slowed. Other influencing factors include weather patterns, awareness, and efficiency measures.
Opportunities in the Natural Gas Sector: As one of the only resource areas with consistently increasing emissions,
Utilities and Xcel are collaborating regarding data sharing, which could improve our understanding of natural gas
usage and savings opportunities, for joint marketing and outreach to our common customers and improved
alignment of efficiency programs and services. The proposed update of the CAP Framework and Energy Policy
may need to formally address the need to transition from natural gas sources for space and water heating in order
to reach our 2030 and 2050 goals. Electrification of space and water heating is becoming increasingly efficient
and effective with technology improvements. Paired with reducing the emissions from electricity production, this
will be an essential pathway to reaching a carbon free energy system.
Transportation - 2017 Emissions Update and Opportunities Looking Ahead
Transportation Emissions: Transportation makes up 24% of the community’s emissions. Transportation emissions
have decreased from 2005 baseline levels by 10% and increased by 2% from 2016. Population increase is a key
driver of increased transportation emissions since 2016, i.e. more people in the area leads to more drivers on the
roads.
Opportunities in the Transportation Sector: As a community known for its bikes and overall connectivity, Fort
Collins’ commitment to providing a range of travel options is well documented. In 2018-2019, the City is updating
its City Plan, Transportation Master Plan, and Transit Plan. These comprehensive planning documents are
the guiding policies for how the community builds out and transportation systems are designed. It is anticipated
additional initiatives will arise for reducing emissions out of these planning processes.
In addition to these overarching planning processes, the City is also exploring more specific strategies in
alignment with the climate action goals, including the following:
• Development of an EV (Electric Vehicle) Readiness Roadmap to support current and future EV
adoption in our community. The Roadmap will establish a vision, goals, and clearly defined roles for City
of Fort Collins Departments, the private sector, and the Fort Collins community. More information on this
planning process can be found at <https://www.fcgov.com/transportationplanning/ev-readiness-
roadmap.php>.
• To achieve the City’s Bike Plan goals, a team will be traveling to the Netherlands this summer to share
best practices and learn how to rapidly scale up bike commuting rates.
Waste Materials - 2017 Emissions Update and Opportunities Looking Ahead
Waste Material Emissions: Waste makes up 4% of the community’s emissions. Waste emissions have decreased
from 2005 baseline levels by 70% and increased 4% from 2016. While the community’s diversion rate improved
from 51% in 2016 to 56% in 2017, overall emissions increased because more waste was sent to landfills that do
not capture methane (resulting in more methane emissions).
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Opportunities in the Waste Materials Sector: The most significant effort in the Waste Materials Sector is the
Regional Wasteshed Planning process with Larimer County, Estes Park, and Loveland to analyze future
infrastructure and policy options as the Larimer County Landfill is poised to close in 2025. The project has
recommended five new facilities; the next update with Council on this process will be on May 22.
In addition to the Regional Wasteshed Planning process, several initiatives enacted from the Community
Recycling Ordinance have seen positive results, including the following:
• The number of residents subscribed to yard trimming services increased 12% from 2016 to 2017 (with
13% of all residents subscribed to these services);
• Grocers started compost collection and have reported positive results, including some grocers opting to
remove trash compacters altogether while others have much less frequent trash collection.
Recycling is part of a global market and currently, recyclable commodities are going through a market downturn.
In 2018, China mandated an extremely low threshold for “contaminants” in paper and plastics loads that are
delivered from the U.S. This adjustment has impacted markets for recyclables across North America, especially in
the west, and costs to handle recyclables have increased. In the short term, staff are working actively with
hauling partners to increase public awareness of the need to ‘recycle right’. Longer-term, this market condition
could drive great opportunities for the development of national and even regional facilities to handle recyclables
and build out the circular economy.
Water - 2017 Emissions Update and Opportunities Looking Ahead
Water-related Emissions: Water makes up 0.3% of the community’s emissions. Water emissions have decreased
from 2005 baseline levels by 3% and decreased by 8% from 2016. Weather patterns, community awareness, and
efficiency and conservation measures are all drivers of these changes.
Opportunities in the Water Sector: When addressing climate action, water represents a small portion of the
community inventory. This is largely due to the fact that Fort Collins has a gravity-based water distribution system,
therefore our community does not have significant energy use from pumping water as many other Western cities
do. Staff has worked with our key partners to continuously improve the efficiency of these systems, which will
benefit multiple community goals including climate action.
Further, as the City begins to focus more on increasing community resilience to potential climate impacts, water
will become one of the most critical issues (as threats include increased drought, wildfire risks which threaten the
watershed, etc.). In 2018, the City is developing its first Municipal Adaptation Plan to identify how to increase
climate resilience within our own operations.
Innovations on the Climate Action Journey
Bloomberg Mayors Challenge: Fort Collins has been named a Champion City in the challenge, with a project idea
to launch a revised on-bill finance program (“OBF2.0”), using external and non-rate payer capital, to drive energy
efficiency upgrades in thousands of older, inefficient rental properties in our community. In addition to economic
and environmental benefits, this effort is expected to improve the health, well-being and equity of Low and
Moderate Income (LMI) households in Fort Collins. The project is a collaboration between Utilities and Economic
Health, with an opportunity to win up to $5M later this year.
Innovate Fort Collins (FC) Challenge: The 2018 Innovate FC Challenge opened April 18, launching the second
round of competition for Fort Collins businesses and organizations. This competition provides seed money to pilot
projects that provide carbon reduction through energy, waste materials, transportation and behavior change
solutions. Applicants can be awarded $3,000-$75,000 for one-year projects that offer scalable outcomes. Letters
of Intent are due May 18 and project finalists will present their proposals at a Public Pitch Night August 30. More
information can be found at www.fcgov.com/innovate <http://www.fcgov.com/innovate>
Innovations in Storage: As mentioned above, a battery storage demonstration project is underway to support
understanding of a range of use cases for commercial and residential integration of solar plus battery storage,
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including technical requirements, interconnection details, dispatchable options, price responsiveness,
programmatic needs and policy objectives.
Community Engagement
When the updated climate action goals were adopted in 2015, community engagement was recognized as one of
the top two strategies needed to achieve the goals (the other was financing/climate economy). Staff is pleased to
share the following efforts:
• A pilot marketing campaign will run from May through July and is designed to promote two major
actions - installing LED lighting and taking one less trip in your car per week. This campaign is being
developed in tandem with Townsquare Media, a local radio network partner, and the City will have a
significant presence at the Taste of Fort Collins, with a goal of engaging 7,500 households in the LED
lighting action.
• The CAP Community Advisory Committee (CAC) expanded in 2018 to include 20 members
representing stakeholders across the triple bottom line (environment, economic, and social) and triple
helix (private, public, and academic sectors). Based on feedback from the CAP CAC, a “pitch session”
was held on March 30 to share conceptual CAP-related BFO offers with the Committee. This session was
well-received by CAC members and provided staff with early feedback as they develop budget offers for
the 2019-2020 BFO process.
• Continued stakeholder engagement - staff continues to meet with interested businesses, community
members and stakeholders and over 2,500 community members were engaged in 2017.
Updated Projections for Achieving the 2020 Climate Action Goal
Staff is pleased to report that, based on the 2017 inventory, updates to the individual initiative projections, and
continuous improvement in modeling, staff can project that if funding levels are sustained in the 2019-2020
budget cycle, we will be at 22% below our 2005 levels. In addition, if all identified initiatives are funded, the
community will be at 25% below the 2005 levels - thus achieving the 2020 goal of a 20% reduction below 2005
levels!
The table below summarizes the 2020 projections, and a full breakdown of the various costs, benefits, and
projected impacts of the various initiatives can be found in Attachment 3. At the Work Session, staff will also
share how additional initiatives, e.g., Platte River’s investment in 150 MW of wind, could impact the 2030 goals.
Table 1: Updated projections for 2020 based on the 2017 inventory, updated initiatives, and model.
Emissions
(Metric Tons
CO2e)
Percent Below
2005 Levels
(baseline)
Notes
2005 Baseline 2,384,528 N/A Actuals
2017 Inventory 1,989,841 -17% Actuals
2020 Forecast (“Do
Nothing More”)
2,000,000 -15% Projections if actions not taken; Based
on 2017 inventory and does not
include projected savings from 2018
2020 Forecast
(Funded/Adopted Initiatives,
140,000 MT)
1,860,000 -22% Projections: Assumes the fully funded
initiatives (in green below) will also be
funded at the same levels in 2019-
2020, e.g., energy efficiency
2020 Forecast (All
Initiatives, Additional 60,000
MT)
1,800,000 -25% Projections: Assumes the remaining
initiatives (in yellow below) are fully
funded or adopted between now and
2020
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Emissions
(Metric Tons
CO2e)
Percent Below
2005 Levels
(baseline)
Notes
2020 Target 1,907,623 -20% Projections
Projected Surpassing of
2020 Target
121,456 +5% Fort Collins is forecast to exceed
the 2020 goal by 5% with all
identified and funded initiatives
Next Steps.
• Staff continues to implement the funded offers through the 2017-2018 budget process.
• Launch CAP dashboard expansion with additional metrics and initiative status (May).
• Publish 2017 inventory report and send out press release (May).
• The marketing campaign will launch in May and run through July.
• Continued alignment with the updates to City Plan, Transportation Master Plan, and Transit Plan.
• Staff is proposing a joint planning and policy update to the CAP Framework and Energy Policy in
2019/2020 to begin focusing the City’s and Utilities’ attention toward the 2030 goal. This process will
develop strategies to improve the community’s climate resilience (a strategic objective in the City’s
Strategic Plan), and leverage existing modeling tools and rigorous data-driven decision-making structure.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Work Session Summary - February 2017 (PDF)
2. 2017 Inventory - Description of What Has Changed (PDF)
3. Detailed Spreadsheet of the Initiatives and the Modeling and Vetting Process (PDF)
4. Power Point Presentation (PDF)
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ATTACHMENT 1
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Attachment: Work Session Summary - February 2017 (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
1 2017 Community Climate Action Numbers – what’s changed since 2016?
Community Climate Action Numbers – What’s changed?
This document provides context on what has changed in the community carbon inventory since the last reported
numbers (in the spring of 2016). Changes are discussed in two categories – (1) revisions to methodology in 2016
and (2) unique progress between 2016 and 2017.
Carbon accounting and forecasting is an iterative process that undergoes constant revision and improvement due
to improved data, corrections, and innovation in methodology. In 2018, major revisions were made to all three
branches of City carbon modeling – inventory, forecast, and projections. The changes are discussed in terms of
impact to 2016’s inventory or to the 2020 “do nothing more” forecast. This document presents:
- 2016 Inventory Revisions
- Forecast and initiative Revisions – Impacts to 2020s
- Progress from 2016 to 2017
Key Takeaways
- Impact of revisions on 2016 inventory: 3.9%1 below 2005 baseline (from 11.57% and 15.4%)
- Unique 2017 inventory progress: 1.05% below 2005 baseline
- Inventory progress in 2017: 16.53% below 2005 baseline (compare: 15.4% in 2016)
- Impact of revisions on 2020 forecast: 1.9% below previously forecast for 2020
- Impact of revisions on forecasted carbon savings from climate action initiatives: varies by charter
2016 Inventory Revisions
Inventory revisions reflect improved data quality, aligned inventory with new international protocol, and more
comprehensively reflected local and national trends. These revisions were back-calculated to the 2005 baseline
for consistency, see Figure 1.
Figure 1. Impact of Community Carbon Inventory Revisions - Impact on Progress shows the progress made below the 2005
baseline before and after revisions were made. The results show that significant progress was not previously captured.
1 All impact values are approximate due to rounding.
0% 0% 0%
-6%
-5%
-12%
-16%
-12%
-9% -10%
-14%
-15%
-17%
0% 0% 1%
-5%
-3%
-10%
-14%
-9%
-7% -8%
-11% -12%
-20%
-15%
-10%
-5%
0%
5%
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Percent below 2005 baseline
Community Carbon Inventory Revisions - Impact on Progress
2017 methodology 2016 methodology
ATTACHMENT 2
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Attachment: 2017 Inventory - Description of What Has Changed (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
2 2017 Community Climate Action Numbers – what’s changed since 2016?
More specifically, the revisions include the following:
• Previously uncaptured progress, e.g., including the proportion of ethanol in gasoline,
• Addressing an error made in the 2016 inventory on vehicle distribution, and
• Aligned waste tonnage and landfill split with characterization.
The impact of these revisions on community progress is illustrated in Table 1 below, with more specific
descriptions on the following pages. Impact is given in % progress below baseline, for example, without the
revisions, the community was -11.57% from the 2005 baseline. The two values, -11.57% plus -1.6% for including
ethanol, brings the total to -13.12%2. Adding all the revisions brings the community’s progress in 2016 to -15.4%
(with approximately .25% error due to rounding). Revisions impact various years, ranging from all years back to
2005 to just the past several years (see Figure 1 above).
Table 1: The types of revisions to the inventory, the years impacted by the revision, and the impact to the inventory are
illustrated. Each of the revisions are further described in the text below.
Type of revision Years impacted
Impact to 2016
(progress from
baseline)
Previously uncaptured progress Varies -4.3%
1. Inclusion of % ethanol blended in gasoline All years -1.6%
2. Improved science on impact of methane All years -1.4%
3. Updated waste characterization 2016 & (2017) -0.9%
4. Updated miles per gallon 2015, 2016, (2017) -0.4%
Fixed error in vehicle distribution Impacts 2013-(2017) 0.7%
Aligned waste tonnage and landfill split with characterization 2015, 2016, (2017) -0.3%
Approximate total impact of revisions -3.9%
Revision 1: Inclusion of % ethanol blended in gasoline
- Ethanol was blended into gasoline (2% - 10% by volume) for all 2005-2017 inventory years.
- As a renewable fuel, ethanol can be used in conventional vehicles up to 10-11% of total fuel volume. As blend
it is already at max, additional gains are not expected in future years.
- Combusting ethanol produces biogenic (as opposed to fossil) carbon dioxide, which is not accounted for in
Fort Collins’ community inventory, as it is assumed to be cycling naturally.
- National data (EIA) used, which is typical of vehicle emissions where local data is harder to find.
- Change has been vetted by the Brendle Group.
Revision 2: Improved science on the impact of methane
- Greenhouse gases reported in carbon dioxide equivalent, which is based on the amount of heat the gas traps
in the atmosphere relative to the amount of heat that carbon dioxide traps.
- Previously, the Fort Collins community inventory calculated the impact of methane as being 21 times that of
carbon dioxide, which reflected commonly used IPCC results.
- The IPCC Fifth Assessment Report has since increased this factor from 21 to 28.
2 All impact values are approximate due to rounding.
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Attachment: 2017 Inventory - Description of What Has Changed (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
3 2017 Community Climate Action Numbers – what’s changed since 2016?
- By adopting this value, in compliance with the new Global Protocol for Community Scale GHG Accounting3,
Fort Collins saw more methane in its baseline year and an increased impact of removing it through waste
reduction activities.
Revision 3: Updated waste characterization
- In 2016, Larimer County conducted a waste audit of material arriving at the Larimer County landfill. This audit
updated a 2006 waste audit that had been used as the inventory’s waste characterization.
- Fort Collins leveraged this recent waste audit to get unique Fort Collins data, allowing for a more locally
specific update to inventory waste characterization.
- Main changes in waste characterization include a decrease in paper and food wastes and increase in yard
waste.
Revision 4: Update Miles per Gallon
- New national miles per gallon data became available that applied to previous years and 2016
Other revisions
- An error was corrected in vehicle distribution, having a moderate negative impact on progress.
- Misalignment of landfilled waste tonnage and waste characterization numbers was corrected.
Forecast and Initiative Revisions – Impacts to 2020
Each year, core variables (i.e. population, energy use) are updated to reflect newly available or recalculated data.
These updates not only affect inventory forecasts, but also impact any initiative using core variable forecasts to
calculate greenhouse gas reductions (which most do).
Table 2. Impact of improvements to the Climate Action Plan model forecast relative to previous 2020 forecast.
Type of revision Years impacted
Impact to 2020
(progress below
baseline)
Forecast Improvements 2018-2050
Population 0.0%
VMT -0.6%
Electric Use 0.4%
Electric EF -1.7%
Approximate total impact of revisions -1.9%
Revision details
- Several variables were updated in 2018, but of them, the latest vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and electricity
emissions factor forecasts had the largest impacts on the 2020 forecast.
- The VMT forecast is provided by the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization and now pulls
from the same data source as inventory VMT data.
3 Fort Collins transitioned to the Global Protocol for Community Scale GHG Accounting in 2017 to fulfill its commitment to the Global
Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy. The change in global warming potential factors is the only major change attributable to the
new protocol.
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Attachment: 2017 Inventory - Description of What Has Changed (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
4 2017 Community Climate Action Numbers – what’s changed since 2016?
- Staff revised the electricity emissions factor used in forecasts and initiative projections to improve the local
accuracy of energy efficiency emissions savings projections and align forecasts and inventory outcomes.
o More information available upon request.
- Electricity use and population reflect normal updates based on updated data, either from the carbon inventory
or from external data sources that have made revised forecasts available.
Progress from 2016 to 2017
Revising the inventory methodology and updating data, as described above, comprises the largest share of the
difference between the last reported value (11.57% below baseline, reported for 2016 in 2017) and the inventory
result in 2017 (16.53%). However, there was also a little over 1% of progress below the 2005 baseline made
between 2016 and 2017. The drivers of that progress are detailed below.
Table 3. Drivers of 2017 community carbon inventory results.
Drivers of 2017 progress
Impact in 2017 (progress
below baseline)
Emissions factor -1.67%
Decrease in electricity use -0.39%
Increase in VMT 0.50%
Increase in natural gas 0.37%
Decrease in landfilled tons but less methane capture 0.12%
Total impact -1.07%
Progress details
- 2017 saw an approximate 1.67% drop in emissions from the 2005 baseline from changes in the electricity
emissions factor, which positively impacted inventory progress. Due to the relationship between weather
patterns and renewable and non-fossil resource performance, trends should be viewed on a larger timescale
and may not be consistent from year to year.
- Electricity use decrease is likely due to a variety of factors, including City efficiency programs, behavior change,
more efficient appliances, and weather patterns (e.g. mild winter).
- Vehicle miles traveled is a modeled number that has historically increased from year to year due to model
parameters that reflect regional/local growth patterns.
- The increase in natural gas is likely due to a variety of factors, including population growth and weather
patterns.
- In 2017, slightly more waste (adjusted to exclude recovered soils used to burry materials) was sent to landfills
that do not capture methane.
Contact Information
Molly Saylor
Environmental Planner
City of Fort Collins
970.416.2148 office
msaylor@fcgov.com
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Attachment: 2017 Inventory - Description of What Has Changed (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
Overall Summary
Emissions
(Metric Tons CO2e)
Percent Change from
2005 Levels (baseline)
2005 Baseline 2,384,528 N/A
2017 Inventory 1,989,841 -17%
2020 Forecast (Do Nothing More) 2,000,000 -15%
2020 Forecast (Funded/Adopted Initiatives, 140,000 MT) 1,860,000 -22%
2020 Forecast (All Initiatives, Additional 60,000 MT) 1,800,000 -25%
2020 Target 1,907,623 -20%
Projected Surpassing of 2020 Target 121,456 +5%
Funded Initiatives or Adopted Policies
This table represents the 12 of 31 initiatives were funded through the BFO process in 2017-2018 or were adopted via policy discussions. Examples include Business and Home Energy Efficiency
and the Community Recycling Ordinance.
Initiative Policy Type *
Net Community
Costs (Annual)
Net Community Costs
(Thru 2020)
Net City Costs
(Annual)
Net City Costs
(Thru 2020)
Adopted GHG
Impact to 2020
Potential GHG
Impact to 2020
Project Lifetime
$/GHG**
Project Lifetime
Benefit/Cost Ratio
Building Energy Disclosure and Scoring Energy Regulatory/Voluntary $ (310,000) $ (400,000) $ 80,000 $ 300,000 4,000 4,000 $ 33 2.7
Business Efficiency Portfolio Base Energy Voluntary $ (5,700,000) $ 21,200,000 $ 1,410,000 $ 13,200,000 57,000 57,000 $ 35 2.1
Business Efficiency Portfolio Expanded Energy Voluntary $ (4,690,000) $ 13,500,000 $ 1,300,000 $ 15,900,000 27,000 27,000 $ 35 2.0
Energy Code Performance Energy Regulatory $ (130,000) $ 3,700,000 $ 70,000 $ 200,000 4,000 4,000 $ 54 1.1
Home Efficiency Portfolio Base Energy Voluntary
Home Efficiency Portfolio Expanded Energy Voluntary
(SP3) Solar Power Purchase Program Energy Voluntary $ 300,000 $ 900,000 $ 10,000 $ 200,000 3,000 3,000 $ 65 0.0
Utilities Rooftop Solar Incentives Energy Voluntary $ (740,000) $ 25,000,000 $ 330,000 $ 3,000,000 14,000 14,000 $ 58 1.1
Rate Redesign for Time of Day Energy Regulatory $ (40,000) $ (1,300,000) $ - $ 100,000 13,000 13,000 $ 2 23.0
Water Treatment Facility Hydropower Energy Infrastructure $ - $ - $ - $ 700,000 400 400 $ 118 1.0
Transit System Expansion Transportation Infrastructure $ (400,000) $ (1,300,000) $ 7,950,000 $ - 2,000 2,000 $ 4,948 0.1
Community Recycling Ordinance Waste Regulatory $ 2,190,000 $ 5,500,000 $ 40,000 $ 400,000 13,000 13,000 $ 178 0.0
Subtotal 137,400 137,400
Partially Funded Initiatives or Initiatives Requiring Further Vetting/Research to Fully Move Forward
This table represents 8 of the 31 initiatives were either partially funded or require further vetting or research to move forward as an initiative.
Initiative Policy Type*
Net Community
Costs (Annual)
Net Community Costs
(Thru 2020)
Net City Costs
(Annual)
Net City Costs
(Thru 2020)
Adopted GHG
Impact to 2020
Potential GHG
Impact to 2020
Initiatives Not Moved Forward or Not Online in the 2020 Timeframe
Result
Initiatives that will be online in the 2020-2030 timeframe
Projects generally on hold or pending further study.
Projects determined infeasible
Projects already complete and/or available
Baseline Forecast
Initiative Modeling and Key Assumptions
To assess initiatives across a common and transparent platform, staff developed a template that allows teams to enter specific projections. For each initiative, the template included
details on project information, costs, and benefits:
Project Information Annual Costs (to the Administrator, e.g., the City, and the Participants, e.g., the Private Sector) Annual Benefits (to the Administrator and the Participants)
Definition Overhead Costs Reduction in Carbon Emissions by Resource Type
Objectives Incentive Costs Resource Cost Savings
Deliverables Installation Costs Savings in Carbon Emission Costs
Value Proposition Maintenance Costs
Alternatives Analysis
Keys to Success
Pilot/Proof of Concept
Market and Policy Analysis
For common assumptions that are used across many initiatives (i.e. forecasted electric rates, population growth), a list of core variables was included and automatically populated. This
ensures consistency across the initiative estimates and projections.
Initiative Vetting
Confidence Grade
High
Medium
Low
This iterative process will be continued and completed as existing initiatives change, due to changing technology or new information, and expanded as new initiatives are identified.
The Model
How were these numbers arrived at? Explanation of the Forecast, Initiative Modeling and Vetting Process, and the Model
The forecasted level of community CO2 emissions, without the reductions from CAP initiative strategies, is projected under our standard inventory protocol. This projection aggregates
over 600 variables from standard indicators, the community inventory, and the municipal inventory.
Based on these data inputs, the CO2 emissions expected for each resource was calculated. For example, our forecasted electric consumption was developed by Fort Collins Utilities using
a time series model. It was adjusted for economic output and population growth over the next 20
years. This forecast incorporates the realized and forecasted benefits of existing energy efficiency programs, but not the additional funding approved in 2017/2018 BFO process.
The federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) standards for vehicle emissions were also incorporated into this forecast. CAFÉ impacts are considered to be largely outside of local
control so it was determined to be appropriate to recognize the impacts of these efforts on our
community emissions before evaluating additional local efforts, such as our CAP initiatives.
After template submission, all 31 initiatives underwent vetting by the Finance Mechanisms committee. This included a review of assumptions and calculations for completeness and reasonability.
Based on their assessment, a confidence grade (High/Medium/Low) was provided based on
the following considerations:
(10) Platte River Renewables Purchase (Tariff 7) (community can already opt-in to this service; other utility scale initiatives are more cost-effective at this point); (11) Municipal
Composting Site (completed in 2017)
The green and yellow sections of this spreadsheet illustrate 20 initiatives that were either fully funded (12 initiatives in green) or partially funded or are still being explored (8
initiatives in yellow). An additional 11 initiatives are either not feasible in the 2020 timeframe or have been placed o
to feasibility concerns. Examples include the Construction and Demolition Sorting Facility or Utility Scale Wind.
Policy
(1) Utility Scale Wind (150 MW will go online in December of 2020, with the first full year of operation in 2021); (2) Utility Scale Solar (20 MW RFP currently under review, anticipated
in 2021); (3) Community Shared Solar (a
Utility Scale Solar); (4) Construction and Demolition Facility and (5) Community Recycling (Organics) merged with the Regional Wasteshed Planning Process; (6) Utility Scale Wind (consideration
of additional 75 MW of wind w
determined in December of 2018; if moved forward, it is anticipated the project will be on the same timeframe as the 150 MW effort).
(7) Co-Gen Set at Drake Wastewater Reclamation Facility (pending further analysis); (8) Wood Utilization Study (formerly Biomass Burner);
(9) CSU Waste to Heat (rendered financially infeasible due to length from nearest high pressure gas line);
Following vetting, the individual initiative templates are imported into the aggregate model. This is the same model which houses the baseline forecast. By evaluating potential CO2 emissions
reductions side by side with existing forecasts, staff is able to evaluate trends and analyze
scenarios towards our 2020 goals.
The model retains each initiative’s annual cost and benefit information, in addition to automatically aggregating to lifetime costs and benefits, discounting to net present values, and
calculating the benefit/cost ratio and cost per metric ton of greenhouse gas (GHG) avoided. Standardizing
these metrics allows staff to evaluate the quantitative differences across different initiatives.
Grade Definition
1
Climate Action Plan and 100% Renewable Energy
Jeff Mihelich, Tim McCollough, Lindsay Ex
May 8, 2018
ATTACHMENT 4
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Attachment: Power Point Presentation (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
$5.9
$3.3
$2.4
2016 & 2017
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
SAVINGS ALONE
7500
Investments = Results
2
2018
2017
2016
INCREASED
MOMENTUM
FROM PLATTE RIVER
& PARTNER CITIES
$
$11.7M TOTAL
NEW CITY
INVESTMENTS
OVERALL IMPACT
LEVERAGING OF
$1.70 FOR EVERY
$1 INVESTED
~$220
ANNUALSAVINGS
PER HOUSEHOLD
And – we have a pathway to our 2020 goals!
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Results
3
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4
Highlights: Utility Scale Energy
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Attachment: Power Point Presentation (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
5
Highlights: Utility Scale Energy
ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
• + 75 MW in wind (December)
• 20 MW solar + storage (RFP)
• Corporate Commitments & Requests
Corporate Renewable
Energy Commitments
Corporate Green Rate Tariff Requests
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Highlights: Local Initiatives
EFFICIENCY
• 2017 savings over 28 gigawatt-hours
(equivalent to 3750 homes)
•3rd
party evaluation confirmed savings and
benefit cost ratio of 1.8
• Adoption of Time of Day rates
DISTRIBUTED RESOURCES
• Over 11 megawatts of local solar
• Distribution system research with CSU
• Demand response pilot with Platte River
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Highlights: Natural Gas
$1 $3
3,000
(1%)
• Key driver – population increase (slower rate)
• Low cost
CHALLENGE
• Standard equipment in new homes
OPPORTUNITIES
• Heat pump technology advances
• Collaboration with Xcel
• Building Energy Scoring
Natural gas emissions are up 2% since 2016; 7% since 2005!
7%
INCREASE
NATURAL GAS
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Highlights: Transportation
$1 $3
3,000
(1%)
1,500
(0.5%)
ALIGNMENT & IMPROVEMENTS
• City Plan & Transportation Master Plan
• Travel behavior survey
• Electric bus testing
Picture of…
Transportation emissions are up 2% since 2016; but have decreased by 10% since 2005!
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Highlights: Waste Materials
$1 $3
3,000
(1%)
1,500
(0.5%)
REGIONAL WASTESHED PLANNING
• Unprecedented collaboration
• Infrastructure recommendations to Council May 22
• Policy discussions coming soon
GROCERY STORE COMPOSTING SUCCESS
• All grocers participating by end of 2017
• Drastically reduced landfilling (from 7x to 2-3x/wk)
Changes in global recycling markets have led to low
prices and low contamination threshold for recyclables
Waste emissions are up 4% since 2016; but have decreased by 70% since 2005!
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10
Highlights: Innovation
$1 $3
3,000
(1%)
1,500
(0.5%)
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11
Highlights: Innovation
EV Readiness Roadmap
Innovation Fort Collins Challenge
& Innovation Summit
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12
Highlights: Innovation
$1 $3
BATTERIES
• Demonstration project underway
• Commercial scale battery at
222 Laporte
• Residential batteries installations
RESEARCH, DATA AND MODELING
• CSU grid system modeling
• Solar Resource Monitoring
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Highlights: Community Engagement
$1 $3
3,000
(1%)
1,500
(0.5%)
80% of Fort Collins residents support the City investing in
programs and creating policies to address climate change
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Highlights: Community Engagement
$1
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Updated Projections
15
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Where We’re Heading
16
• Continue Alignment with City Plan
and Transportation Master Plan
• Innovation Fort Collins Challenge (Apr)
• Campaign launch (June)
• Building Energy Scoring (Aug)
• Combined update to the CAP Framework
and Energy Policy (2019-2020)
Update to most recent
screen shot
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17
Climate Action Plan and 100% Renewable Energy
Jeff Mihelich, Tim McCollough, Lindsay Ex
May 8, 2018
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DATE:
STAFF:
May 8, 2018
John Phelan, Energy Services Manager
WORK SESSION ITEM
City Council
SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION
Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this work session is to provide an update on the adoption of local solar generation, to present
information regarding the opportunities and challenges on increasing levels of local solar and to seek feedback
from Council on the development of future goals and policies.
GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED
Staff is seeking general feedback on the topic of local solar and distributed generation, in addition to the following
specific question:
1. Does Council support the development of a distributed energy resources roadmap in conjunction with an
update to the Energy Policy?
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
General Topic
The purpose of this work session is to provide an update on the adoption of local solar generation, to present
information regarding the opportunities and challenges on increasing levels of local solar and to seek feedback
from Council on the development of future goals and policies. While the discussion herein is focused on solar
photovoltaic systems installed within Fort Collins Utilities service area, similar concepts and issues apply to
distributed energy resources technologies in general (solar, batteries, demand response, etc.). For the purposes
of this work session, the terms local solar and distributed energy resources can be considered interchangeable.
Solar Adoption Trends
Fort Collins has seen rapid growth in the installed capacity of local solar. Through April 2018, there are over 1,100
operational systems with a total capacity of 11.1 megawatts; generating over 1% of the community’s electricity,
enough to serve over 2,000 typical Fort Collins homes. The rate of installations has also increased, with over one
fourth of the current systems installed in the last twelve months.
Fort Collins Energy Policy, adopted in 2015, includes a renewable electricity target of 20% by 2020, with 2%
coming from resources installed on the distribution system (local). In 2017, the community reached 16% overall
renewable electricity, with 1% from local solar. To reach the 2020 Energy Policy target, approximately 10
megawatts of additional solar needs to be installed from 2018 through 2020. This will effectively double the
amount of solar in Fort Collins compared to today’s levels. Looking forward to 2030, a reasonable forecast of
solar adoption results in 50 megawatts or more of local solar capacity.
Benefits of Local Solar
Fort Collins has supported local solar through programs, net metering, interconnection standards and rebates
which have encouraged innovators and early adopters to invest in solar. These tools and resources demonstrate
the values expressed by City leadership and Utilities. The benefits of local solar include (Attachment 1):
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• Energy and peak demand reductions. Similar to energy efficiency, solar reduces the community’s
electricity loads, which in turn reduce future requirements for investment in new supply resources.
• Customer satisfaction. Customers expect Utilities to provide programs and services for both efficiency
and renewable energy. Utilities customer satisfaction surveys consistently show strong support for
programs (Attachment 2).
• Leveraged investment and local economy. The capital requirements for installing solar, while declining,
remain substantial. In 2017, the residential rebates were leveraged at an over 9:1 ratio. This investment
and related services support employment and secondary local economic benefits.
• System benefits. Local solar has the potential to provide distribution system benefits, especially when
paired with pending storage technologies. It’s also important to note that there is the potential for
additional distribution system investment required by localized high saturation of solar.
• Resiliency. Similarly, local solar has the potential to provide resiliency benefits when paired with pending
storage technologies.
• Air quality. Solar is a zero emissions resource, supporting continued efforts to reduce local air pollution.
• Climate and Energy Policy objectives. Local solar targets are included in the Energy Policy, and each
solar kilowatt-hour comes with associated carbon emissions reductions.
Challenges of Local Solar
As local solar grows over time, it also presents a number challenges to Fort Collins Utilities ability to serve all
customers in an equitable fashion. The very strategies and tactics which support the growing adoption of solar
may, in the future, present risks to the viability of the distribution grid as a community asset. The grid is the asset
which makes it possible to accommodate local solar, while also providing the vital daily services we depend upon
from the use of electricity. It is essential to note that Fort Collins electric systems are not at risk with the current
low levels of solar penetration. It is the purpose of this work session to identify this future risk and suggest the
development of plans to create a sustainable business model to continue the growth of solar.
Opportunities for Sustainable Solar
There are several key reasons why Fort Collins is very well positioned to address the future challenges of
additional solar. These include:
• Advanced metering infrastructure. The AMI meters deployed in Fort Collins measure and record the net
electricity consumption or net electricity export every 15 minutes. This provides an elegant metering
solution for solar, with solar energy consumed within the home reducing bills by the retail rate, while net
export energy is metered and credited as a separate item on the bill.
• Time of Day rates. The TOD rate structure going into effect in October 2018 also provides the foundation
for future solar value pricing. The adopted rates vary by time of day, season of the year, and for
consumption and export.
• Tools and timing to adjust. Fort Collins current low penetration (< 3.0% of residential customers) and
energy production (just over 1% of electricity) means that there is time to adjust in a gradual and
predictable path towards a more sustainable business model.
Solar Business Models
Solar systems and associated programs have many different structures and characteristics, resulting in many
possibilities for both customers and utilities. Fort Collins current solar programs are described in Attachment 3.
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However, the most basic solar model differentiation is defined by the location of the solar system relative to the
electric meter. These two approaches and basic characteristics are described below:
• Behind the meter. Behind the meter systems are the most common structure and is also known as “net
metering” or “net energy metering”. Behind the meter systems incorporate the solar generation value into
the electric bill of the host building. Approximately 70% of the current solar capacity in Fort Collins is
behind the meter.
Historically, this approach utilized traditional mechanical electric meters, creating the terminology of solar
systems making the meter “spin backwards.” Without advanced meters, this approach generally creates a
bank of credits in the summer which are carried forward to be used in winter months.
As noted above, Fort Collins advanced meters measure and record the net electricity consumption or net
electricity export every 15 minutes. The balance of charges and credits which result are resolved for the
customer on a monthly basis.
• In front of the meter. In front of the meter systems connect the output of the solar system through a
separate meter directly to the distribution system. This approach is also known as a feed-in tariff, and in
Fort Collins as the Solar Power Purchase Program (SP3). While more common in Europe and Asia, there
are few examples in the United States of a feed-in tariff. Approximately 30% of the current solar capacity
in Fort Collins is in front of the meter.
This approach provides a financial payment via a power purchase agreement for generated electricity,
while the host building’s electric usage and associated bill is not affected. Electricity generated from this
approach serves all customers and becomes part of the resource mix for the community. The SP3
program is described in more detail in Attachment 3, and is currently only offered at commercial scale in
Fort Collins.
There are many factors which influence the details of how these two fundamental solar models are implemented.
These include legislative, regulatory and legal as well as utility specific programmatic and rate differences. A
representative list of these factors includes:
• Up front cost
• Source of capital
• Utility ownership
• Scale and location
• Customer segment and rate structure
• Rebates
• Procurement options
• Self-consumption credits
• Export production payments
• Avoided wholesale costs
• All requirements agreements
• Buy-sell agreements
• Value of solar electricity
• Roof lease payments
• Solar operations and maintenance
• Net metering definitions
• Base rate charges
• Solar standby charges
• Sizing requirements
• Tax credits
• Power purchase agreements
• Renewable energy credit accounting
• Carbon accounting
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Utility Owned Rooftop Solar Program Examples
There are a few utility-owned rooftop (aka distributed) solar programs which provide examples. The most well-
known are two pilot programs in Arizona. These and two other examples are summarized below:
• Solar Partner Program from Arizona Public Service (APS). APS operated a pilot program offering
customers a $30 per month rooftop “lease” payment in exchange for the utility installing solar panels on
the home. The electricity generated from the system was “in front of the meter” and did not change the
customer’s bill. APS used a bulk purchase approach with local solar vendors to contract for the
installation and subsequent maintenance. The program installed 1,670 systems as a research and
demonstration pilot focused on utility control of smart inverters. While APS has published a number of
reports on the lessons learned from the project, the program is closed to new installations.
• Tucson Electric Power (TEP) Residential Solar Program. The TEP-Owned Rooftop Solar program was
approved as a pilot by the Arizona Corporation Commission in December 2014. The program has a $10
million budget to install an estimated 600 rooftop systems, each with an average capacity of about 6
kilowatts. The program is full subscribed and is now closed. Customers would pay $250 to sign up and
agree to a flat charge of $16.50 per kilowatt, fixed for 25 years. This creates a flat bill for customers for
this time period.
• Alectra PowerHouse Pilot. Alectra is the second largest municipally owned utility in North America,
serving over 1 million customers in Ontario, Canada. The PowerHouse pilot will install utility owned solar,
batteries and energy management systems in 20 homes. The results of the pilot may lead to additional
scaling and investment.
• Georgetown Utilities Virtual Power Plant. Georgetown, Texas is participating in the Bloomberg Mayors
Challenge as a Champion City. Their proposed idea is to develop a virtual power plant serving their
community with solar systems and battery storage. The project is currently under feasibility studies as
part of the Bloomberg competition.
Solar Financial Analysis
With the many variables noted above, the best way to illustrate the financial impacts of local solar is through a
simplified example for the two basic structures.
Behind the meter:
• Non-solar customer. For a non-solar residential customer in Fort Collins, Utilities purchases a kilowatt-
hour (kWh) from Platte River Power Authority for 6 cents and sells that kWh to the customer for 9 cents.
The net impact of this transaction is 3 cents of revenue, which funds the distribution system and
associated services of Utilities.
• Behind the meter solar customer. When a customer makes the investment to install solar on their home,
Utilities purchases (or provides a credit) for the solar kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 9 cents and sells that kWh to
the same or different customer for 9 cents. The net impact of this transaction is zero revenue.
• The net effect of this transition to solar is known as lost revenue, and in Fort Collins case is approximately
3 cents per kWh. The analysis is different for commercial customers, due to differences in the rate
structures.
• At current levels of net metered solar, this lost revenue is over $300,000 annually, representing 0.25% of
total electricity revenue and approximately 0.8% of the revenue for the Light & Power utility operations
and services.
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• The funding requirements for the distribution system come from the remaining ratepayers over time,
creating a disconnect whereby solar customers are not contributing an equitable share to the ongoing
requirements to maintain the grid.
• Based on typical solar system production and home consumption, the installation of behind the meter
solar in 2018 (2 megawatts) will add approximately $60,000 to the annual budget for purchased energy
from net exports in future years.
In front of the meter:
• Host customer. Commercial customers who are hosting an in front of the meter solar system pay the
same electricity bill, based on their usage, load profile and rate structure. In some cases the host
customer is also the solar developer.
• Solar PPA. Utilities contracts with the solar developer for a pay for performance PPA at an agreed upon
price. Agreements in progress this year are approximately 12 cents per kWh, fixed for 20 years for
systems larger than 100 kilowatts.
• The net effect of this higher cost resource is a small increase in the overall retail cost of electricity to all
customers. Under current agreements for the SP3 program, this equates to approximately 1% of the
electric price, or rate, for the output from 4.5 megawatts of local solar.
Another factor with regards to local solar is Fort Collins contractual relationship with Platte River Power Authority
(of which Fort Collins is also one of four member-owner communities). The All Requirements Agreement between
Fort Collins and Platte River does not restrict customer-owned behind the meter generation. The same agreement
does limit Fort Collins from owning more than one percent of peak generation (currently equivalent to
approximately three megawatts). While this could be a limiting factor in deployment of expanded in-front of the
meter options, Fort Collins and Platte River have a Solar Memorandum of Understanding which accommodates
the SP3 program while also meeting the All Requirements agreement.
Table 1 summarizes specific metrics for four representative business models with assumptions of current costs,
rate structures and policies. For each business model, the table also notes the tactics available to Utilities to
change or influence the financial outcomes.
• Behind the meter residential. This example is for typical home solar, representative of approximately 50%
of the solar capacity in Fort Collins.
• Behind the meter commercial. This example is for typical commercial solar, representative of
approximately 15% of the solar capacity in Fort Collins. The primary difference is the rate structures for
commercial customers and the characteristic that the solar electricity is consumed within the host
building.
• In front of the meter SP3. This example is for 2018 proposed SP3 projects.
• In front of the meter utility owned rooftop. This example is not currently offered in Fort Collins. It is similar
in approach to the SP3, with the procurement, installation and ownership being under Utilities. There are
several utilities in North America who have pilot or demonstration programs with this model (attachment
4). This model also has the potential to be directed at traditionally “hard to reach” segments in the
community.
For the behind the meter and SP3 cases, adjustments in a range of tactics can result in the solar systems being
neutral or better from the utilities (and other ratepayers) perspectives. The next section discusses
recommendations for developing a predictable path forward to create a sustainable solar financial model.
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Table 1: Comparison of Four Representative Solar Business Models
Description Behind the
Meter
Residential
Behind the
Meter
Commercial
In Front of
Meter SP3
In Front of
Meter Utility
Owned Rooftop
Current average cost ($ per watt) $3.50 $2.50 $2.50 $2.75
Capital source (Private:Utility) 90:10 80:20 100:0 0:100
Lifetime utility value (NPV cents
per kWh)
-$0.05 -$0.03 -$0.02 -$0.06
Tactics available to change •Rebate
•Export
pricing
•Fixed
charges
•Rebate
•Rate
structure
•PPA price •Bulk purchase
•Capital
availability
•Program costs
•O&M costs
Recommendations
Fort Collins customers’ increasing adoption of solar energy systems provides long-term opportunities and
challenges for Utilities, for all customers and for the community’s climate and energy goals. Due to the early
phase of Fort Collins location on a typical adoption curve, the current program structures are not financially
sustainable if continued indefinitely. It is reasonable to expect an increase of approximately five times the solar
capacity by 2030.
The timing is excellent for a planning process to create a predictable path for local solar, and distributed energy
resources, out to 2030 and beyond. Between now and 2020, updates to three key policy and planning initiatives
will be underway; these initiatives are the Fort Collins Energy Policy, the Climate Action Plan Framework and
Platte River Power Authority’s Integrated Resource Plan. There will not be a single approach which achieves the
desired outcomes, instead what will be necessary is an optimized mix of strategies, tactics and business models
to achieve community goals and customer expectations
Staff recommends that a distributed energy resources roadmap project be initiated, in coordination with the
Energy Board and community stakeholders. The Energy Board’s 2018 work plan includes:
• Light & Power’s finances are being challenged by its transition to a more distributed and renewable smart
grid as well as by using electricity revenues to administer energy conservation measures that reduce
electricity revenues or that affect the consumption of energy other than electricity. The Energy Board will
study and make recommendations for the development of a sustainable business plan for Light &
Power.
The scope of the initiative would be to review the goals, targets, rates, pricing, policies and business models for
solar and distributed energy resources. The objectives for the effort would be to establish, a sustainable financial
model for distributed energy resources and a predictable path and timeline for customers and trade allies which
recognizes the value of both the distribution grid system and individual assets to create Fort Collins energy future.
Next Steps
Pending Council feedback, staff will coordinate a work plan and schedule for the development of a distributed
energy resources roadmap with the Energy Board and community stakeholders. The work plan will maintain
alignment with proposed updates to the Energy Policy, Climate Action Plan Framework and Platte River
Integrated Resources Plan.
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May 8, 2018 Page 7
ATTACHMENTS
1. Local Solar Benefits (PDF)
2. 2017 Customer Satisfaction Survey (PDF)
3. Fort Collins Solar Programs (PDF)
4. Powerpoint Presentation (PDF)
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ATTACHMENT – Local Solar Benefits
ATTACHMENT 1
2.1
Packet Pg. 41
Attachment: Local Solar Benefits (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
ATTACHMENT – 2017 Customer Satisfaction Survey Results
ATTACHMENT 2
2.2
Packet Pg. 42
Attachment: 2017 Customer Satisfaction Survey (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
2
Attachment 2
2.2
Packet Pg. 43
Attachment: 2017 Customer Satisfaction Survey (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
1
ATTACHMENT – Fort Collins Solar Programs
Solar Rebates Program -Residential
April 2018
Program Manager – Leland Keller
Program Coordinator – Todd Musci
Description The Solar Rebates Program provides incentives to install net metered electrical generation
capability on residential properties. The program began offering rebates to home owners in 2008
and has grown to become a year-round dependable program supporting a stable market for solar
systems in the city. Rebate amounts have been reduced over time to the current incentive of $0.50
per watt, with a rebate limit of up to $1500 for residential customers. Solar systems are also limited
by design to produce no more than 120% of the customer’s annual load.
Results and
Analysis Program Calendar Year Participants
New Installed Capacity
kW (DC)
Incentives Paid
2018 YTD 90 584.1 $144,738
Annual Target 327 1,959 $490,000
Percent of Year 38% 30% 30%
Results Percent 28% 30% 30%
Analysis: Residential solar rebates were funded for the entire calendar year in 2017, lending
stability and confidence to vendors for their business development work in the community. In
2017, we finished the program year with $65,954 (13.5%) of program year rebate monies
uncommitted. The $424,046 of 2017 PY funding committed represents 287 projects; of this,
$133,500 was carried forward in purchase orders for projects underway. The $419,086 paid in 2017
included $143,337 from budget years 2015 – 2016.
Targets • 327 participating projects at $1,500 each for a total of 1,959 kW
• Marketing research being conducted to identify existing program demographic markers
• We anticipate conducting an evaluation in 2018 on program process and satisfaction
Dependencies
and Risks
• The solar programs will experience the effects of the 30% import tariff ordered in January
2018; the impact is likely to be downward pressure on the number of projects and upward
pressure on system pricing.
• Implementation of the TOU rate change in October will favor solar customers with west-
facing panels and negatively impact solar customers with east-facing panels. Staff is
conducting research to identify the influence the TOU rate presents to solar customer bills,
customer satisfaction, and trends in program enrollment.
• The challenge for 2018 will be to balance marketing and other market stimulation to avoid
exhausting the rebate budget before the end of the program year. If program demand
exceeds the rebate budget, solar contractors may lose confidence in program stability.
Partners and
Related
Programs
• Market awareness efforts to draw participants into the Distributed Battery Storage Pilot
may drive more awareness of solar rebates and solar participation in 2018.
• Consideration of developing and launching criteria for “Participating Contractors” in 2018
to enhance consumer protection and quality of work, similar to Efficiency Works.
More info • Residential sector in 2017 accounted for 90.7% of the solar portfolio capacity additions.
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Solar Rebate - kW
ATTACHMENT 3
2.3
Packet Pg. 44
2
Community Solar Program
April 2018
Program Manager – Leland Keller
Program Coordinator – Todd Musci
Description The Riverside Community Solar Project is a 621 kWdc solar generation facility located in Fort
Collins on repurposed brownfield land on Riverside Drive, built and operated by Clean Energy
Collective (CEC). Customers are provided a virtual net-metered credit on their utility bill for
electricity output (fluctuates monthly) derived from their share of the project. Community Solar
makes solar generation possible to customers regardless of their dwelling type or ownership
status. It is now fully subscribed with a wait list. Approximately two hundred five residents
collectively own all the shares in the Riverside Project.
Results and
Analysis
Program Calendar Year Participants
Total Installed
Capacity
kW (DC)
New Installed Capacity
kW (DC)
Incentives
Paid
2018 YTD 208 621 0 $0
Annual Target 200 621 0 $0
Percent of Year 30% 30% 30% 30%
Results Percent 103% 100% 100% 100%
Analysis: The Community Solar program is seeking development of a new project in collaboration
with Platte River and the other member cities to support the expansion of this program to serve
interested customers. A proposed project at Rawhide was abandoned in 2017 due to concerns
about price and schedule uncertainty related to pending import tariffs. Staff is currently rescoping
the program structure related to a redesign of the Green Energy Program.
Targets • The system was forecast to generate more than 931 MWh annually. First quarter
production was 213.7 MWh. The system operator is investigating differences due to
snow load, weather variations and panel soiling.
• Community Solar was planned as one element in meeting the Energy Policy local
generation target (2% by 2020).
• Utilities is working with PRPA to pursue expansion of solar and wind generation
capacity through power purchase agreements. The new resource would likely be
delivered to customers through the Renewable Energy Choice program.
Partners &
Programs
Clean Energy Collective: CEC owns, operates and maintains the solar system, provides
customer service functions to subscribers and calculates monthly bill credits provided to Utilities
to credit customer bills. We anticipate a transition to TOD-based credits for generation to CEC
customers.
Platte River: This system falls under an MOU between Utilities and Platte River whereby the
monthly generation of the solar system is accounted for under Tariff 1 and Platte River then
credits Utilities for the value of solar.
More info • https://www.fcgov.com/utilities/residential/renewables/fort-collins-community-solar
• https://fcu.rooflesssolar.com/
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
2005
2006
3
Solar Power Purchase
Program
2018 Program Plan and
Report
Program Manager-
Rhonda Gatzke
Program Coordinator-
Todd Musci
Description The Solar Power Purchase Program uses a feed-in-tariff model with power purchase agreements to
increase solar generation on the distribution grid. The initial systems are compensated at
contracted rates set by Utility at $0.15/kWHr for systems greater than 100kW and $0.18/kWHr for
systems less than 100kW. In both cases, the term of the PPA is 20 yrs. Projects were constructed
beginning in 2013 with the first system operating in January 2014 and the last project completion in
Dec 2015. These projects were eligible for a 3x multiplier with regards to the Colorado Renewable
Energy Standard.
Results and
Analysis
Program
# of
Projects MW
Capacity
Net Generation
MWh
FIT Annual
Spend
$
YTD new additions 0
0 MW 0 0
Bi-Annual Target new additions ~4
~2MW 3,000 ~$282,000
Percent of Year 5
0% 0 0
Results Percent 0%
0% 0 0
2017 14
3.7 4,878 $752,724
Analysis: 2014 and 2015 SP3 projects continue to perform on target. 2017+2018 BFO Cycle granted
$282,000 Annual FIT allowance for 20 yrs; no new projects are constructed to date and thus we are
dramatically missing our target objective.
Targets • Annual Target Descriptors/Numbers: Funding is available in 2017 and 2018 to expand the
SP3 with another phase, predicted to add ~2MW of additional solar capacity. Competitive
program design includes reverse bid price per KWH solar generation. Program application
period opened in June 2017 and closed September 2017 with anticipated project
construction period Nov 2017-Nov 2018. Results provided ~819 KW projects (4 total) w/wt
avg ~11.4 ¢/kWH and~50% funds committed. Extended application period through Feb
15th is targeting another ~4 projects funded by remaining ~50% remaining funds
• Ongoing operations: Remaining ~ 18 yr of 20 yr PPA existing 14 projects are producing as
expected (~5GWH/yr) at FIT annual cost ~$750K.
• Planned Changes to Program Structure: 2019/2020 BFO cycle may include SP3
• Purchasing Requirements: None foreseen beyond execution of PPAs
• Marketing Segment: Greater marketing to C&I customers needed, along with Solar
Developer strategic partnership development so we can jointly reduce the soft costs
associated with customer acquisition
2.3
Packet Pg. 46
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
4
• Reporting Metrics and Frequency: Monthly SP3 generation accounting is being conducted
and reported to PRPA for ‘Buy-Sell’ reconciliation
• Plan for Evaluation: Under development
Dependencies
and Risks
• International Trade Commission Sec 201 case has stalled most projects through Q3&Q4
2017 and Q1 2018 to-date. With module cost increase impacts unknown to financiers
there have been holds placed on 3 existing projects under contract (~760 KW Pavilion
Shopping Mall) with Namaste and Unico Solar Investors. Continued debate on tariff impact
may lengthen stall into 2018.
Partners and
Related
Programs
• Solar Developers Namaste, Community Energy, Sandbox Solar, and other local integrators
(potentially Solar City, Custom Solar, Atmosphere Conservancy) are integral to SP3 project
development. These are the same partners needed for C&I rebated (net-metered) project
development.
More info • Local solar installations total ~10 MW to date; SP3 constitutes ~ 40% of that total capacity
• Link: \\UFP\Utilities\CCSU\Energy-Services\Programs\Renewables\Solar Power Purchase
Program\SP3 TRACKING\PRPA Tracking\2018 PRPA Generation Tracking.xlsx
2.3
Packet Pg. 47
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
5
C&I Solar Rebate Program
2018 Program Plan and Report
Program Manager-Rhonda Gatzke
Program Coordinator-Todd Musci
Description The C&I Solar Rebates Program provides incentives to install net metered electrical generation
capability on Commercial and Industrial properties. The program began offering rebates to
businesses in 2010. Rebate amounts have been reduced to $0.50 per watt, with each project size
limit increased to 200 kW for commercial installations. Premises with solar are billed under their
normal rate structure, with advanced meters registering net consumption and net production on a
15 minute basis and monthly net production credited at a fixed rate, depending on GS rate class.
Results &
Analysis
Program
# of
Projects
MW Capacity MWh
Annual Rebate
Spend
$
YTD 0 0
0 0
Bi-Annual Target ~5 2
3000 $500,000
Percent of Year 5% 0%
0 0
Results Percent 0% 0%
0 0
2017 1 0.1
150 $46,170
Analysis: 2017+2018 BFO Cycle granted $500,000 Annual C&I Rebate allowance; only one new
project has been constructed to date and thus we are dramatically missing our target objective.
Targets • Target is to add 1MW net metered C&I generation per yr in 2017&2018 with up to
$100,000/system (targeting 5 large systems per year).
• Ongoing operations: An annual average of 5 C&I systems (35 total since 2010) have been
rebated; avg system size ~ 21KW. Total capacity of incented C&I net-metered
systems~748 kW through 2017.
• Planned changes to program structure or delivery: Removing any policy barriers to the
adoption of net-metered Commercial PV projects warrants working with Legal to clarify
Utility integration with 3rd party owned systems
• Purchasing requirements: None
• Marketing/target customer segments: Greater marketing to C&I customers is needed,
along with Solar Developer strategic partnership development so we can jointly reduce the
soft costs associated with customer acquisition
• Reporting metrics and frequency: Quarterly via Plan Book
• Plan for next evaluation – under development
Dependencies
and Risks
• Adoption is dependent upon financials that are largely limited by C&I net metering rate
design which values energy at ~50% of bill total. Demand charges comprise ~50% for which
PV doesn’t significantly abate. Additional risk to program is the continued uncertainty
surrounding module import tariff (ITC Sec 201).
Partners and
Related
Programs
• Solar Developers Namaste, Community Energy, Sandbox Solar, and other local integrators
(potentially Solar City, Custom Solar, Atmosphere Conservancy) are integral to C&I solar
rebate/net-metered project development. These are the same partners needed for SP3
project development.
2.3
6
More info • Where to look for more info:
https://www.fcgov.com/utilities/residential/renewables/solar-rebates
• Percent of portfolio: C&I total capacity ~750 KW equates to ~8% of total ~10MW local PV.
2.3
Packet Pg. 49
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
7
2.3
Packet Pg. 50
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
1
Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models
John Phelan, Energy Services Manager
May 8, 2018
ATTACHMENT 4
2.4
Packet Pg. 51
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Questions for City Council
• Does Council support the
development of a distributed
energy resources roadmap in
conjunction with an update to the
Energy Policy?
2
2.4
Packet Pg. 52
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Solar Adoption
Good News
• Community is adopting solar
• Supports CAP and Energy
Policy targets
• Leveraging private capital
• Local jobs
3
Takeaway: solar adoption is
significant and accelerating
2.4
Packet Pg. 53
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Renewable Targets
Energy Policy
• 20% by 2020
• 2% local by 2020
2017 update
• 16% overall renewable
electricity
• 1% from local solar
4
Takeaway: we are approaching
established target milestones
2.4
Packet Pg. 54
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Benefits of Local Solar
• Demand reduction
• Customer service
• Leveraged investment
• System benefits
5
Would you be willing to
purchase renewable energy
for an additional cost?
Takeaway: local solar has
multiple benefits
• Climate and Energy
Policy objectives
2.4
Packet Pg. 55
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Solar Adoption
Challenges
• Sustainable financial model
• Grid as a community asset
6
Takeaway: local solar also
presents long-term risks
2.4
Packet Pg. 56
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Solar Adoption
Opportunities
• Advanced metering
infrastructure
• Time-of-Day pricing
• Tools and timing
to adjust
7
Takeaway: the time is right to review local solar strategies
2.4
Packet Pg. 57
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Distributed Solar Business Models
“Behind the meter”
(aka net metering)
8
70% of solar 30% of solar
“In front of the meter”
(aka feed-in tariff)
2.4
Packet Pg. 58
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Behind the Meter Solar
-3 ¢
for
FC
grid
10,500,000
kilowatt-hr
-3 ¢ -$315,000
9
+3 ¢
-6 ¢
+9 ¢
Non-solar customer
0 ¢
-9 ¢
+9 ¢
Solar customer $128M
-$0.3M
$37M
Takeaway: current local solar model creates a deficit
2.4
Packet Pg. 59
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Solar Financial Elements
Behind the Meter
Residential
Behind the Meter
Commercial
In Front of Meter SP3 In Front of Meter Utility
Owned
• Base cost
• Rebate
• Retail price
• Export price
• Avoided wholesale price
• Base cost
• Rebate
• Retail price
• Export price
• Avoided wholesale
price
• Demand rate structures
• Base cost
• PPA payment
• Platte River buy-sell
• Value of solar
• Retail rates
• Base cost
• PPA payment
• Platte River buy-sell
• Value of solar
• Retail rates
• Roof lease payment
• O&M costs
10
Takeaway: behind the meter and in front of the meter
approaches have different financial structures
2.4
Packet Pg. 60
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Solar Business Models
Description Behind the Meter
Residential
Behind the Meter
Commercial
In Front of Meter
SP3
In Front of Meter
Utility Owned
Current average cost
($ per watt)
$3.50 $2.50 $2.50 $2.75
Capital source
(Private: Utility)
90:10 80:20 100:0 0:100
Lifetime utility cost
(NPV cents per kWh)
-$0.05 -$0.03 -$0.02 -$0.06
Tactics available to
change
Rebate
Export pricing
Fixed charges
Rebate
Rate structure
PPA price Bulk purchase
Capital availability
Program costs
O&M costs
11
Takeaway: an optimized mix of business models will be
necessary to achieve goals and customer expectations
2.4
Packet Pg. 61
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Recommendations
Review solar and distributed
energy resource
• Goals and targets
• Rates and pricing
• Business models
Objective:
Develop distributed solar
roadmap to 2030
12
2.4
Packet Pg. 62
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Questions for City Council
• Does Council support the
development of a distributed
energy resources roadmap in
conjunction with an update to
the Energy Policy?
13
2.4
Packet Pg. 63
Attachment: Powerpoint Presentation (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Packet Pg. 48
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
Community Solar - kW
2.3
Packet Pg. 45
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Attachment: Fort Collins Solar Programs (6743 : Local Solar Goals, Policies and Business Models)
Packet Pg. 39
Substantial vetting; contains detailed breakdown of all major costs and benefits, with clear links on what drives benefits. Includes consideration to sensitivity of key variables over
time. Can be validated vs. external
benchmarks.
Moderate vetting; contains reasonable detail on breakdown of major costs and benefits. Justifies linkage and scale of benefits. Substantiated with internal data.
First pass vetting; includes required data, but can be issued a low rating due to insufficient detail on the breakdown of one or more major costs or benefits, poor linkage between cost
and benefit, or oversimplified
assumptions (such as flat costs in perpetuity).
1.3
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Attachment: Detailed Spreadsheet of the Initiatives and the Modeling and Vetting Process (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)
Project Lifetime
$/GHG**
Project Lifetime
Benefit/Cost Ratio
Green Building Energy Voluntary $ 180,000 $ 1,800,000 $ 30,000 $ 200,000 - 1,000 $ 113 0.5
Street Lighting Upgrades Energy Voluntary $ - $ - $ (170,000) $ 700,000 - 3,000 $ 17 6.1
Expand Congestion Management System Transportation Infrastructure $ (7,110,000) $ (10,100,000) $ 1,800,000 $ 6,100,000 8,500 17,000 $ 62 3.9
Bicycle Network & Ridership Improvements Transportation Infrastructure $ (7,440,000) $ (12,700,000) $ 1,130,000 $ 6,100,000 1,000 20,000 $ 37 6.6
Improve Pedestrian Network Transportation Infrastructure $ (310,000) $ (400,000) $ 1,070,000 $ 13,900,000 400 1,000 $ 844 0.3
Trip Reduction Program Transportation Voluntary $ (4,630,000) $ (3,000,000) $ 180,000 $ 700,000 - 5,000 $ 10 25.5
Land Use Patterns Land and Water Use Regulatory $ (3,940,000) $ (12,400,000) $ 130,000 $ - 10,000 20,000 $ 8 28.6
Utilities Landscape Irrigation Incentives Land and Water Use Voluntary $ 230,000 $ 400,000 $ (330,000) $ (800,000) - 100 $ 2 2.2
Subtotal 19,900 67,100
*Type Grand Total 157,300 204,500
Initiatives are categorized by the following types: Regulatory, Voluntary, and Infrastructure Adopted vs. Potential 47,200
Regulatory indicates that participation is driven by policy
Voluntary indicates that participation is by choice
Infrastrucuture indicates that capital investments are made that drive emissions reductions
**GHG Impact calculated from net present value of all costs associated with the initiative, divided by lifetime GHG benefits.
Projections if actions not taken; Based on 2017 inventory and does not include projected savings from 2018
Projections: Assumes the fully funded initiatives (in green below) will also be funded at the same levels in 2019-2020, e.g., energy efficiency
Projections: Assumes the remaining initiatives (in yellow below) are fully funded or adopted between now and 2020
Detailed Spreadsheets of the Initiatives
These tables represent the synthesized data for all 31 initiatives, including which initiatives have moved forward (green), those which are either partially funded or need more vetting
(yellow), and those which have been paused/stopped (red).
Notes
Actuals
Actuals
Projections
Fort Collins is forecast to exceed the 2020 goal by 5% with all identified and funded initiatives
Included in Business Efficiency Base
Included in Business Efficiency Expanded
ATTACHMENT 3
1.3
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Attachment: Detailed Spreadsheet of the Initiatives and the Modeling and Vetting Process (6744 : CAP/100% RE Work Session)