DEPARTMENT: Environmental Resources
FILE TYPE: Consent Action
TITLE
title
Authorization To Amend Contract With Avant Energy, Inc., For Byllesby Dam Services
end
PURPOSE/ACTION REQUESTED
Authorize an amendment to the existing contract with Avant Energy, Inc., for market operation services and execute Service Schedule 3 for CleanCounts registration for sale of renewable energy credits created at Byllesby Hydroelectric Facility.
SUMMARY
Dakota County owns the Byllesby Dam and operates the hydroelectric facility under the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) safety regulations. Since 1987, the County coordinated dam operations and maintenance with Neshkoro Power Associates (NPA) through a lease agreement. The County Board authorized replacing NPA's lease agreement with an operating agreement to provide hydropower operation services at Byllesby Dam by Resolution No. 11-305 (June 21, 2011), beginning May 1, 2011, and running through March 2021. The March 2021 agreement termination date was selected because it coincided with the expiration of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between NPA and Xcel Energy for the Byllesby Dam. The PPA stipulated that it would expire in March 2021 or on the date the facility's existing turbine equipment was shut down as part of the turbine upgrade project, with no option to renew the existing PPA.
After consultation with local power sales experts, the County Board authorized by Resolution No. 20-295 (June 16, 2020) a submittal of an application to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator for sales of energy, which allows the County to sell power generated by the Byllesby Dam to other utilities in the Midwest.
On July 19, 2022, the Dakota County Board of Commissioners authorized by Resolution No. 22-288 (July 19, 2022) the Physical Development Director to execute a contract with Avant Energy, Inc. to provide capacity market services for the sale of power. The contract term was established for five years, with a not-to-exce...
Click here for full text