Wake Electric’s compliance strategy with the NC Renewable Portfolio Standard includes a requirement that 10 percent of our energy resources be renewable by 2018.

Part of that strategy includes signing 20-year contracts for over 100 million kWh per year of NC solar renewable energy certificates (RECs) or the equivalent of more than 15,000 residential scale rooftop installations.

Wake Electric also has contracted for a smaller number of renewable energy certificates (RECs) from wind power resources in places like west Texas, Oklahoma and Iowa. The number of wind RECs is smaller since we are limited to using out-of-state renewables for up to 25 percent of our compliance strategy.

For additional information about RECs, check out the EPA video above.

Thanks to favorable wind conditions in the West and Midwest and generous federal tax credits, wind power turbines have become relatively common in that part of the country. As a result, both the actual electric energy produced and the renewable attributes (wind RECs) for this resource have become relatively inexpensive.

Wake Electric is pleased to offer a new feature to our residential electric vehicle rate at no additional cost. (See the actual rate schedule – called “R-EV” for detail at wemc.com.)  In addition to the 2 cents discount for usage between 10 p.m and 6 a.m, Wake Electric will purchase and retire the renewable attributes (wind RECs) associated with 5,000 kWh for each year on the R-EV rate.  That amount of renewable energy should be more than enough to cover recharging your electric vehicle for the year.

Of course, the wind RECs purchased and retired for this program are in addition to those purchased and retired for our REPS compliance strategy. So, while you “ride like the wind” in your electic vehicle, you know your ride is “wind powered” as well.