An American Electric Power (AEP) group company, Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is seeking proposals for 1.3 GW renewable energy in the US, that should come from around 800 MW wind and 500 MW of solar power.
The request for proposals (RFP) specifies some of the selected facilities need to come online as early as the end of 2024, and all of them by the end of 2025. Admissible projects may include battery storage, emerging technologies and other resources to supplement the portfolio for optimum performance and affordability, it specified.
Solar projects located within Indiana and/or Michigan will be accepted, while wind projects may also come from Illinois or Ohio. It will prefer facilities that provide economic benefits to the states of Indiana and/or Michigan and on winning engage local, small and diverse suppliers for the work required.
Selected resources will be submitted to state regulatory commissions in the 2 states for review and approval.
I&M will accept bids by April 21, 2022 as it plans to enter contracts with successful developers by the end of 2022. Details are available on a dedicated information website. The whole RFP process will be monitored by Charles River Associates (CRA).
I&M said resources sought in the all-source RFP is aligned with its Powering the Next Tomorrow plan as stated in its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) to diversify its energy generation portfolio. Currently it operates 5 solar farms and purchases power from 4 wind farms. In 2021, more than 80% of its energy generated was emission-free.
As per the IRP, it plans to launch another All-Source RFP in 2023 or 2024 to bring in 800 MW of solar, 60 MW of storage and 1 GW of gas peaking that can come online by the end of 2026 and 2027.