Peter T- I am opposed to mandatory renewable standards because of the pricing difference between renewable and fossil fules.   As stated above- we pay under $20 MW and renewables will cost around $60 MW.   That would triple the generation cost and cause rates to skyrocket.   I think that would cause finantial hardship on too many people.   I don't mind a gradual buildup if done rationally.   (is that an oxymoron asking the govt to be rational?)   

Michigan currently has 6% of all its energy from renewable.    We have been ordered to offer a voluntary program that will have 2-3% of all residential customers on it by 2008.    We currently have over 2 million customers so we are being asked to enroll 60,000 customers in the first 3 years.   I think that is ambitious but reasonable.   (Most utilities with renewable programs have less than 1% of customers on their program)

If we were mandated to have 10% of customers in the next two years, and it had to be sourced from Michigan, I think there would be colusion and all the renewable suppliers would raise their prices because they knew we were required to buy from them.   (Even renewable energy guys are capitalists)   We have seen that begin to happen alraeady.   We only have 3 windmills in Michigan that produce 2.4 MW of energy.   Pretty pathetic.   We also are the "Saudi Arabia" of wind with over 16,000 potential MW in the great lakes that are level 4 and 5 making them profitable today. (per new wind maps that were published 2 months ago) Unfortunately, the one wind guy is charging $58 MW with a 20 year contract and every other wind mill has raised their price to $60 to meet it.   In Ohio and Wisconsin you can buy wind for $35 MW.   That is why I am oppsed to government mandates.

PS: Father Charles Morris- founder of the Michigan Interfaith Power and Light organization and leading energy guru in the state (can a Father be a guru?) gave my daughter a partial ownership share in a Native American wind farm as a Bat Mitvah gift (and a coupon for a quart of Ben and Jerry ice cream)   How many people can say they are a part owner of a wind farm.   Cool gift.