News Releases for July 2005
July 29, 2005
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Hoeven Welcomes Passage Of Energy Bill
BISMARCK, N.D. - Gov. John Hoeven today lauded passage of a new energy bill with a number of benefits for North Dakota, including strong incentives for biofuels, wind and other renewable energy development, as well as for increased domestic production of conventional energy sources.
The Governor has worked through the National Governors Association, the Governors' Ethanol Coalition and the Western Governors Association, as well as Congress to help pass new energy legislation, which has been almost five years in the making.
"We've targeted energy as one of the key industries for growth in North Dakota, Hoeven said. "We're the sixth largest energy producing and exporting states in the nation, with both renewable and conventional energy resources. In addition to building our traditional energy base - including coal, oil and natural gas - we're building two new ethanol plants, working on a new biodiesel facility, and currently have five new wind farms projects in development."
Hoeven said President Bush and Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman have worked hard to promote legislation that expands conventional energy sources, promotes alternative energy, encourages conservation and invests in the technologies we will need in the future."
Some of the major provisions of the bill are:
- Investment in increased transmission capacity.
- Investments in clean coal technology.
- Renewal of the renewable energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind energy producers.
- An expanded ethanol and biodiesel tax credit.
- A Renewable Fuels Standard that requires the use of 7.5 billion gallons of ethanol, biodiesel or other biofuel by 2012.
- Federal Loan Guarantees for coal liquefaction, a technology that converts coal into liquid fuels, like diesel and gasoline.
In the last legislative session, Hoeven pushed to build on an already broad slate of energy development initiatives created over the past four years, including a North Dakota Transmission Authority to promote wind and coal development, expansion of the Governor's Ethanol Production Incentive and creation of incentives for biodiesel and hydrogen.
Hoeven said North Dakota is unique in its energy development strategy by finding new and effective ways to combine its energy resource development.
"We have great synergies in play in North Dakota, with companies using conventional fossil fuels to help generate renewable energy," Hoeven said. "For example in Richardton, we've broken ground on a plant that will use coal to make ethanol, and near Underwood another ethanol plant will be using excess steam from a coal-fired electrical generation plant. Coal plants in turn are partnering with wind developers to expand transmission capacity, which will help both industries expand and get their product to market."
Among the most promising developments, Hoeven said, is an incentive for coal liquefaction, which converts lignite into a variety of petroleum products, such as diesel and gasoline. The Governor and the state Department of Commerce have been working for more than a year with a major producer considering a $750 million facility in western North Dakota, he said.
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