Portland General Electric Company (NYSE: POR) has taken another step toward achieving a clean and reliable energy future for its customers and the communities it serves by circulating a draft request for proposals seeking 100 average megawatts of renewable power generating resources.

The additional renewable energy - the equivalent of one large wind farm - is expected to help PGE meet its proportionate share of Oregon's greenhouse gas reduction goal, which will require cutting carbon emissions in the utility's system 80 percent by 2050. It will also count toward achievement of Oregon's renewable portfolio standard. Under the Oregon standard, PGE must supply 50 percent of its customers' electricity needs from qualifying renewable resources by 2040.

"By continuing to drive down emissions using a diverse portfolio of clean, reliable and renewable energy resources, and promoting economy-wide emission reductions through electrification and smart energy use, we will bring a clean, cost-effective energy future to Oregon," said Maria Pope, PGE's president and CEO. "This request for proposals for renewable energy will be an open, competitive process to assure we are able to identify the best options to expand our renewable portfolio while keeping electric service affordable and reliable for our customers."

RFP details and process

Bids submitted when the RFP is finalized and issued must meet a minimum size of at least 10 megawatts, and can represent a variety of technologies including geothermal, biomass, biogas, solar, wind and hydroelectric power. Bids can also be structured in a variety of ways, including power purchase agreements or proposals for facilities that PGE would own and operate. If bids received prove cost effective for service to customers, PGE may acquire a single resource or a mix of resources to achieve the total desired renewable energy target, and expects the resources acquired to be brought into the company's portfolio in the 2020-2021 timeframe.

By sharing the draft, PGE is giving potential bidders and interested stakeholders an opportunity to ask questions and offer suggestions to improve the RFP before it is issued formally. The company will respond to all feedback received. Any resulting changes will be incorporated prior to issuing the final RFP this spring.

The RFP will be conducted under guidelines established by the Oregon Public Utility Commission and is a significant step in implementing PGE's current integrated resource plan, which the OPUC acknowledged in 2017. Consistent with those guidelines, the OPUC has retained an independent evaluator, Bates White, to monitor PGE's procurement process. Bates White will host a website, available next week, where bidders and stakeholders may ask questions of PGE regarding the RFP so that the answers will be available to all participants in the process.

The draft RFP and appendices are available online at www.PortlandGeneral.com/2018RenewableRFP.

Portland General Electric | www.portlandgeneral.com