PNM "grid modernization" plan draws support
Apr. 26—As regulators prepare to consider a proposal from Public Service Company of New Mexico to put hundreds of millions of dollars into "grid modernization," reactions to the plan among New Mexicans range from enthusiastic support to terror.
Many — including some proponents of decarbonization — consider PNM's plan to be a fundamental, long-overdue investment that is necessary for the energy transition. At an April 18 public hearing, Renewable Energy Industries Association executive director Jim Desjardins said New Mexico is "well behind the rest of the United States" in the implementation of advanced metering infrastructure.
Some New Mexicans have stood firmly against PNM's grid modernization plans, however, with concerns over possible risks associated with advanced metering infrastructure, which includes technology like "smart meters." During last week's hourslong hearing, dozens of people expressed various worries about PNM's plan to install smart meters for all of its more than 500,000 customers.
Their concerns ranged from possible health effects from wireless radiation to cybersecurity to costs to customers. One customer, Jennifer Robbins argued the company's cost-benefit analysis ignored "the high cost on human health and the environment."
Robbins said smart meters would benefit the utility's bottom line but not customers and argued the analysis overstates customer savings from smart meters and underplays fees for opting out of the meter replacement program. In its application for the grid investment, PNM proposes charging a monthly fee of $28 for customers who opt out of smart meters.
The Public Regulation Commission has held several hearings in recent weeks over grid modernization, particularly relating to a cost-benefit analysis regulators required from the utility, who submitted an application for grid modernization in fall 2022.
Commissioners ordered PNM to perform a cost-benefit analysis of the grid modernization plan in May 2023 "to assess the reasonableness of PNM's Application, establish a baseline for performance going forward, and prioritize any metrics that are established now or in a subsequent proceeding," according to the commissioners' order.
At last week's hearing, several people spoke about health conditions they said they experienced due to exposure to electromagnetic waves from smart meters, including tinnitus, heart palpitations, insomnia, vision problems and even cancer. Some said they moved to New Mexico because the state does not have smart meters and they would consider leaving if PNM's plan was approved. Others had privacy concerns about what PNM planned to do with the data produced by advanced metering infrastructure.
During an April 24 public hearing, PNM witness James Shields — a consultant who performed the analysis of the utility's grid modernization plan — said PNM's plan for investing in the grid is consistent with packages he has reviewed for utilities in other states.
"These are common technologies across the utility industry," Shields said, adding advanced metering infrastructure is made up of "fundamental technologies required for a modern grid to take on distributed energy resources."
Distributed resources refers to smaller forms of energy generation — such as rooftop solar units — that are located on the consumer side of the grid.
Shields said PNM is "in a unique spot" because the amount of distributed resources on PNM's grid is higher than most utilities have had before addressing grid infrastructure modernization.
"The urgency around this is a little higher here than I've seen in other investment plans," he said, adding that if action is not taken to address the grid, "power quality issues will happen on the system."
PNM argued in its application that "a modern and efficient grid means that customers will be better able to conserve and shape their usage and that distributed resources can be more quickly planned for, deployed, and optimized on the grid."
Shields testified the company did not "identify any risks" associated with advanced metering infrastructure.
Commission staff is expected to issue a recommendation for a ruling on the case in the coming months, after which commissioners will vote on whether to approve PNM's plan.
