Energy/ Environment

Healey calls for orderly transition away from natural gas

Petition raises host of questions that need to be answered

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ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY petitioned the Department of Public Utilities on Thursday to investigate how the state’s natural gas utilities should transition to a future where the fuel they are selling no longer fits in with the state’s carbon emission goals.

Massachusetts has set a goal of zero carbon emissions by 2050, and Healey argues the state, natural gas utilities, and their customers need to start planning. The petition said California and New York have already launched similar investigations.

“As electrification and decarbonization of heating increases, the Commonwealth’s natural gas demand and usage from thermal heating requirements will decline substantially and could be near zero by 2050,” the petition says. “As the Commonwealth reduces its fossil fuel consumption, the Department should establish a consistent regulatory framework that protects customers and maintains reliability and safety during the transition.”

Healey recommended the investigation be conducted in two phases – one phase focusing on utility forecasts about their role in a decarbonized economy and the second on the policies needed to reach the state’s emission mandates. Her petition raises a host of questions that need to be answered, including whether renewable natural gas (gas made from cow manure, for example) has potential.

The attorney general’s petition comes at a time when environmental advocates are pressing for a reduction in natural gas usage even as industry officials say the fuel is cheap, plentiful, and gaining market share.

Tom Kiley, president and CEO of the Northeast Gas Association, which represents gas utilities in nine northeastern states, said he had been alerted by Healey’s office that the petition was coming but hadn’t seen it. He acknowledged an energy transition is in the works, but said the natural gas industry is on the upswing right now, not the downswing.

He said the region added 1,200 megawatts of natural gas-fired power plants last year and 52 percent  of homes use the fuel for heating. He also said natural gas is responsible for squeezing oil and coal plants out of the market, helping the state meet its 2020 carbon emissions goals.

“We’re going to be around for decades,” Kiley said.

Healey raises concerns in her petition that as the customer base of natural gas utilities shrinks, state leaders will need to figure out a way to protect the remaining customers from being stuck with larger and larger bills.

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About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

About Bruce Mohl

Bruce Mohl is the editor of CommonWealth magazine. Bruce came to CommonWealth from the Boston Globe, where he spent nearly 30 years in a wide variety of positions covering business and politics. He covered the Massachusetts State House and served as the Globe’s State House bureau chief in the late 1980s. He also reported for the Globe’s Spotlight Team, winning a Loeb award in 1992 for coverage of conflicts of interest in the state’s pension system. He served as the Globe’s political editor in 1994 and went on to cover consumer issues for the newspaper. At CommonWealth, Bruce helped launch the magazine’s website and has written about a wide range of issues with a special focus on politics, tax policy, energy, and gambling. Bruce is a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He lives in Dorchester.

Kiley downplayed cost concerns. He said natural gas is plentiful and cheap. He said its cost is currently $1.61 per million BTUs, compared to $13.65 in mid-June 2008.

National Grid, which owns gas and electric utilities, issued a statement that took a slightly different tack than Kiley. Grid said it supports reaching net zero in emissions by 2050 and welcomes Healey’s proposed DPU investigation. “We believe the most customer-beneficial decarbonization pathways will meet three criteria: ensuring energy safety and reliability, preserving customer affordability and adoptability, and enhancing resiliency in the face of increasing climate-related weather variability,” the statement said. “The Northeast is likely to need a tapestry of solutions for heat, and our research and experience shows us that the gas network can play an integral role, using new technologies to carry zero carbon fuels like renewable natural gas, including hydrogen, or enabling geothermal districts.”

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