Hartford. Conn., mayoral candidate Eric Coleman recently said that if elected he will push for the formation of a public power utility that would serve the city.
“Hartford would establish a clean energy based distributed power generation system that could produce electricity at a more stable long-term price than the current market,” Coleman’s campaign said in a news release.
Coleman is a candidate for the Democratic mayoral nomination. The primary vote is scheduled to take place in September.
The prices would be stabilized through long-term power purchase agreements and the city would employ fuel cells as well as other green energy supplies. The primary power generation would be Connecticut based fuel cell technology, the campaign said.
Coleman would prioritize the following objectives during his first 100 days in office:
- Acting under the authority of state law and working with local, federal and state government, utility companies and the private sector form an electric utility run by and for the benefit of the city;
- Update and expand the previously adopted Energy Improvement District Plan to prioritize stabilization and reduction of energy costs across the board;
- Working in partnership with a coalition of Connecticut municipalities or independently, seek the maximum funding under the Inflation Reduction Act to weatherize, conserve and install alternative energy in low income and multi-family residences;
- Take advantage of federal and state incentives to establish a clean energy-based power supply that could produce electricity at a more stable long term price than the current market for all residents and businesses.
- Use existing public money such as federal and state grants and tax credits to lure private sector entrepreneurship to increase investment in diversifying the city's energy sources and creating jobs; and
- Create an inventory of underutilized, blighted and brownfield sites to be revitalized as alternative energy generation facilities such as fuel cell energy facilities.
Coleman would place the implementation and expansion of the Energy Improvement District Plan at the top of his mayoral agenda.
Investor-owned Connecticut Light & Power currently serves Hartford.
The American Public Power Association offers a wide range of resources related to municipalization.
