Missouri legislative committees advance bills to extend sunset on Ameren’s Smart Energy Plan
Two committees in both houses of the Missouri General Assembly on Wednesday approved bills that would renew and expand upon provisions of state law that bore Ameren Missouri’s Smart Energy Plan, an $8.4 billion grid modernization project.
The Missouri House Utilities Committee voted to pass House Bill 1734, while the state Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection, Energy and the Environment Committee approved the companion bill, Senate Bill 756. HB 1734 has been referred for consideration to the state House Rules-Administrative Oversight Committee, while SB 756 heads to the floor of the full chamber for action.
If enacted, SB 756 and HB 1734 specifically would extend and expand upon landmark energy policy legislation approved in 2018 by the Missouri General Assembly that enabled Ameren Missouri’s Smart Energy Plan.
“Missourians are benefiting from Ameren Missouri’s Smart Energy Plan, enabled by the passage of Senate Bill 564 in 2018 by the Missouri legislature, through greater resiliency, more reliable service and cleaner energy, all while keeping electric rates well below Midwest and national averages,” Ameren Missouri Vice President of Regulatory and Legislative Affairs Warren Wood told Daily Energy Insider.
The company is installing smart technology, including outage detection and restoration switches, delivering up to 40 percent improvement in reliability, Wood said.
“And, we’re helping attract dozens of new businesses to the state through one of the most competitive economic development incentive rates in the nation, resulting in thousands of new jobs in Missouri,” he added.
The 2018 legislation enabling the utility’s plan, which also invests in smart technology, stronger poles and upgrading aging energy infrastructure, includes a sunset date of Dec. 31, 2023. Both SB 756 and HB 1734 would extend that date for 10 more years, or, if approved by the Missouri Public Service Commission, the date could be extended even further.
Additionally, the pending legislation would bolster the Economic Development Incentive (EDI) that is a part of the Smart Energy Plan and allows qualified customers to receive a discount on their new electric energy rates for several years. The bills would allow more large businesses to utilize the EDI discount, according to Ameren Missouri.
“Passage of SB 756 and HB 1734 would ensure that [our] grid modernization projects and economic development programs can continue to improve reliability and boost vitality in the communities we serve, providing Missourians with a smart, secure and stable energy future,” said Wood.
Missouri Sen. Bill White (R-32) sponsored SB 756, while Missouri Rep. Michael O’Donnell (R-95) sponsored HB 1734.
White said last week that his bill is supported by all of the state’s major electric providers, and bill proponents testified on Feb. 23 before members of the Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection, Energy and the Environment Committee to tout the benefits of “extending the sunset on the economic incentive discount rates passed in 2018, which have led to rate affordability, smarter technology, grid modernization, rapid outage support and job growth in our state.”
In the first three years of implementing its Smart Energy Plan, Ameren Missouri has improved reliability through $2.7 billion of investments in the energy grid, the creation of 4,600 new jobs, the retention of 4,200 existing jobs, and a $15 million increase in tax revenue for local communities, according to the utility’s Smart Energy Plan 2021 Progress Report.
All of the upgrades have materialized through more than 2,000 projects that the utility has completed thus far on the approved five-year plan, 57 percent of them supported by Missouri-based suppliers, according to its report.
Among Ameren Missouri’s long-term goals under its Smart Energy Plan are to upgrade 500 miles of its lowest-performance power lines among 4,400 miles of line; install roughly 2,350 smart switches; address 175 old substations among its total of 900 substations; and upgrade a total of 1.2 million smart meters, according to its 2021 progress report.
Currently, according to Ameren Missouri’s updated Smart Energy Plan filed last month with the Missouri Public Service Commission, 750 smart switches have been installed; there are 41 new or upgraded substations; 463,000 smart meters have been installed; and 115 miles of power lines have been upgraded.
“These are changes that many of our customers can see today,” Ameren Missouri President Mark Birk said last month. “Customers will continue to see improvements as more upgrades are completed across our 24,000-square-mile system.”
