Des Moines, Iowa-based MidAmerican Energy Co. provided its Iowa customers with more than half of their electricity from renewable sources last year, the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) verified on Tuesday during its monthly meeting.
The IUB verified that MidAmerican Energy served 50.8% of its retail electric load using renewable generation. MidAmerican Energy expects this percentage to grow annually as the company completes additional wind projects.
“MidAmerican Energy has achieved an exciting milestone as a renewable energy leader,” says Adam Wright, MidAmerican Energy’s president and CEO. “We have now crossed the 50-yard line and we’re moving closer to the goal, which is the vision we announced in 2016 to ultimately provide 100 percent renewable energy for our customers.”
The GreenAdvantage program, launched by MidAmerican Energy last year, quantifies the amount of renewable energy its electric customers can claim. The program is offered to all MidAmerican Energy customers.
“This achievement is not only significant for us as a company, but it’s significant for our customers and more broadly for Iowa. That’s because everyone benefits from our substantial and still-growing ability to harness energy from the wind,” Wright continues. “Wind energy is friendly to our environment, helps keep rates low for our customers and benefits Iowa’s economy in many ways.”
Last year, MidAmerican Energy paid $19.6 million in Iowa property taxes on wind turbines, the company notes.
In May, the utility announced plans to generate renewable energy equal to 100% of its customers’ usage on an annual basis, upon completing its newest proposed wind energy project. The company expects to complete the project, Wind XII, in late 2020. (Wind XII is subject to IUB approval.)
