Idaho Power submits latest integrated resource plan, promising accelerated emissions reductions
Working with an advisory panel, Idaho Power developed and submitted a new integrated resource plan (IRP) to state regulators, laying out a 20-year ideal that included accelerated carbon emission reductions compared to its last submission.
“A lot of work goes into identifying future infrastructure needs and ensuring the most reliable, affordable and least-risk plan to address those needs, especially in a region that is expanding rapidly,” Mitch Colburn, vice president of planning, engineering and construction, said. “The IRP is the culmination of more than a year of hard work by Idaho Power employees and IRPAC members, whose time and expertise make our plan better.”
It has been two years since Idaho Power last submitted an IRP, and in that time, some needs have changed. The company noted that clean energy resources, transmission and energy storage will be critical to maintaining reliable service and keeping energy affordable in the face of regional growth. As such, it laid out plans to convert coal-fired generation to natural gas for its more than 620,000 customers and tack on a net addition of 6,888 MW of resources such as wind, solar and storage.
By 2043, Idaho Power expects its customer base to increase to 855,000 – an almost 38 percent increase. With all those extra bodies will come an increasingly large demand on electricity. The company predicted peak demand would rise an average of 80 MW per year.
Because of this, new clean energy alone won’t be enough to meet it. Instead, the company also plans to add various energy efficiency measures and demand-side management resources to help decrease energy use during periods of high demand. On the transmission side, Idaho Power has several new lines planned out, including a 500 kV exchange to enter service in 2026.
