In its recently submitted Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), PNM became the first energy company in the nation to provide a detailed plan on how it will transform its electric generation to 100-percent emissions-free by 2040.
The PNM IRP runs parallel with the company’s sustainability goals and aligns with its commitment to provide 100-percent emissions-free power to its more than 530,000 customers. PNM was the first U.S. Investor Owned Utility to set a 2040 emissions-free goal and it is the first in the nation to share tangible plans on how it will get there.
The PNM IRP process examined New Mexico’s energy needs and identify sources to light up New Mexico. The plan represents more than a year of extensive collaboration between PNM, its customers, local advocates, and environmental, business and community organizations.
“I am incredibly grateful for the people of our state who spent countless hours with our team to develop this PNM Integrated Resource Plan. We invited customers, stakeholders and advocates to join us on this journey as we looked at the next twenty years of electricity needs. Thank you to those who walked with us through this process over the past eighteen months,” said Pat Vincent-Collawn, president, CEO and chair of PNM.
As stakeholders considered New Mexico’s energy future, PNM asked that everyone uphold four key elements to guide them through the process: 1) does the plan keep the lights on for PNM customers, 2) is the plan affordable and does it minimize costs for PNM customers, 3) does the plan mitigate environmental impacts on the state, and 4) does the plan meet all regulatory requirements.
PNM took the valuable dialogue during the IRP public meetings to develop a twenty-year roadmap and a four-year action plan that defines the steps PNM will take to achieve an emissions-free energy future. Those steps include:
- PNM continuing its work to be 100-percent coal-free by the end of 2024.
- PNM increasing investment in reliable zero-carbon resources, such as wind, solar, battery storage, hydrogen and energy efficiency. PNM plans on adding >1,000 megawatts of renewables and battery into its system from 2020 through 2025. That’s enough to power around 200,000 homes.
- Optimizing our generation resources portfolio with reliable resources to serve our customers.
Through this plan, PNM customers, who currently receive electricity from 44-percent carbon-free resources, will see that percentage skyrocket to 65-percent by 2022 and 80-percent by 2025.
This effort, along with the company’s action on environmental causes, has earned PNM a top spot in the Sierra Club’s utility decarbonization benchmark study.
The IRP is required by the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission every three years. PNM proactively reached out to their customers and the public to gain insights on this process. The final report is viewable at www.PNM.com/IRP.
