Presentation production, consumption, utility mix

Production, Consumption, or Utility Mix: Does It Really Matter?

Christoph Koffler – PE INTERNATIONAL Alexander Stoffregen – PE INTERNATIONAL Art Diem – Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Irene Hwang

Does the grid mix matter?

Challenge

drives many impacts

hard to quantify

What is the environmental burden of consuming 1 kWh of electricity in the US? All current US LCIs are based on production mixes.

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Does the grid mix matter? eGRID2012 best available data source

• Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database • US EPA Clean Energy Program • Production data for each US power plant • • • •

Fuel type(s) Heat input Heat / electricity output GHG & criteria pollutant emissions

• Reference year 2009

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Does the grid mix matter?

5 virtually independent grids

• Very little exchange with each other • Production data + imports ≈ consumption • Insufficient spatial granularity • Causality decreases with distance from power plant AK

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HI

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Does the grid mix matter?

10 NERC regions

• North American Electric Reliability Corp • Power exchange not accounted for • Spatial granularity remains limited

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Does the grid mix matter?

28 eGRID subregions

• Highest spatial granularity • Subregions designed to minimize power exchange • Recommended by WRI for PCF/CCF

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Relevance of power exchange

12.07.2012 Diem and Quiroz (2012): How to use eGRID for Carbon Footprinting Electricity Purchases in Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories. International Emission Inventory Conference. Tampa, Florida - August 13 - 16, 2012.

Does the grid mix matter?

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Does the grid mix matter?

FERC data on power exchange

• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission • Form No. 714 - Annual Electric Balancing Authority Area and Planning Area Report

• Annual report on kWh delivered and received from neighboring FERC regions

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Does the grid mix matter?

Match eGRID and FERC data (2009)

• 28 eGRID subregions • 22 FERC reports (PCA, ISO) • Data gaps • Data inconsistencies • Data errors

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Does the grid mix matter?

22 consumption mixes for the US

• 15 direct eGRID matches • 3 FERC regions: MISO, PJM, NYISO • 4 partial eGRID subregions: MROW (O), RFCW (O), SRTV (O), SRVC (O)

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Does the grid mix matter?

Consumption mix vs. production mix

Delta > 10%: CAMX, FRCC, NYISO, RFCW(O), SRMV, SRTV(O), SRVC(O)

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Does the grid mix matter?

Consumption vs. utility mix: Florida Power & Light FRCC (consumption)

100%

AP

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100%

EP

100%

GWP

FPL

100%

PM2.5

100%

SFP

12

Does the grid mix matter?

Consumption vs. utility mix: Southern California Edison CAMX (consumption)

100%

AP

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100%

EP

100%

GWP

SCE

100%

PM2.5

100%

SFP

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Does the grid mix matter?

Consumption vs. utility mix: New England NEWE (consumption)

100%

AP

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100%

EP

100%

GWP

NSTAR

100%

PM2.5

100%

SFP

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Does the grid mix matter?

Conclusions • Choice of appropriate grid mix can make a big difference • Utility and production mixes should be used with caution to avoid the impression of green-washing

• Combination of eGRID with FERC data creates best available inventories of US electricity consumption

• 22 regions improve spatial resolution compared to continental interconnections & NERC

• Data sets will be part of the next GaBi release

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THANK YOU! c.koffler@pe-international.com

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Does the grid mix matter?

References Diem and Quiroz (2012): How to use eGRID for Carbon Footprinting Electricity Purchases in Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories.

Annual International Emission Inventory Conference. Tampa, Florida. August 13 - 16, 2012.

Weber et al (2010): Life Cycle Assessment and Grid Electricity: What Do We Know and What Can We Know? Environ Sci Technol 2010, 44, 1895–1901 Rothschild & Diem (2009): Total, Non-baseload, eGRID Subregion, State?

Guidance on the Use of eGRID Output Emission Rates. Annual International Emission Inventory Conference. Baltimore, Maryland. April 14 - 17, 2009.

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