Clean Energy Plan
Clean Energy Plan Goals
• Reduce electric power sector greenhouse gas emissions by 70% below 2005 levels by 2030 and attain carbon neutrality by 2050.
• Foster long-term energy affordability and price stability for North Carolina’s residents and businesses by modernizing regulatory and planning processes.
• Accelerate clean energy innovation, development, and deployment to create economic opportunities for both rural and urban areas of the state.
Key Recommendations
To successfully transition to a clean energy future, North Carolina must establish a 21st-century regulatory model that incentivizes business decisions that benefit both the utilities and the public in creating an energy system that is clean, affordable, reliable, and equitable.
The following overarching recommendations are critical to the transition and will drive the priorities identified by the stakeholders:
• Develop carbon reduction policy designs for accelerated retirement of uneconomic coal assets and other market-based and clean energy policy options.
• Develop and implement policies and tools such as performance-based mechanisms, multiyear rate planning, and revenue decoupling, that better align utility incentives with public interest, grid needs, and state policy.
• Modernize the grid to support clean energy resource adoption, resilience, and other public interest outcomes.
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Supporting Documents
1. Energy Sector Profile & Landscape
3. Electricity Rates and Energy Burden
4. Stakeholder Engagement Process and Comments
Implementation Updates
Recommendation B-1: NC Energy Regulatory Process (NERP) Summary Report and Outputs
Recommendation A-1: Carbon Reduction Policy Design Study
Vision
Executive Order No. 80 acknowledges North Carolina’s leadership in technology innovation, research and development, and skilled workforce to promote clean energy technology solutions. It calls for market innovations that drive economic expansion and job creation to produce a smart, resilient, and a modern electric grid while balancing reliability, cost, economic growth, equity, and environmental and public health impacts.
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is charged with collaborating with businesses, industries, power providers, technology developers, North Carolina residents, local governments and other interested stakeholders to increase the utilization of clean energy technologies, energy efficiency measures, and clean transportation solutions. DEQ is tasked to deliver the Clean Energy Plan to the Governor by October 1, 2019.
In preparing this plan, DEQ used an open and inclusive process that solicited stakeholder input and developed a series of policy, regulatory, administrative, and program recommendations that achieve the intended vision. It is our intent that this plan will be a “living” document that provides a roadmap for pursuing our collective vision. It can be revisited periodically as advancements in technology occur, implementation costs are reduced, and policies and regulatory actions are taking effect.