Annual Report 3 - New Mexico - Energy, Minerals and Natural ...

In 2004, ECMD facilitated the installation of the nation’s first multiple biofuels station in Santa Fe. The station
dispenses B20 bio-diesel (diesel blended with 20 percent biodiesel) and two blends of ethanol (E10, E85). Also in
2004, ECMD helped enact a five-year Motor Vehicle Excise Tax exemption for hybrid-electric vehicles, thereby
saving New Mexicans $600 to $900 on the purchase of a gasoline-electric hybrid.
Over the past eight years, ECMD provided financial support to and worked closely with the Land of Enchantment
Clean Cities Coalition which, as part of the national organization, helped achieve a remarkable milestone in 2005:
displacement of more than one billion gallons of gasoline since inception of the program. Our program works
closely with Land of Enchantment Clean Cities Coalition to promote efficient transportation, advanced power-train
technologies and cleaner-burning alternative and renewable fuels.
In 2008, ECMD provided funds for the City of Santa Fe Parking Division to purchase two electric vehicles for use in
daily parking enforcement patrols. A photovoltaic solar project funded by ECMD at Albuquerque Sunport produces
power for electric vehicles used at the airport.
The Energy Innovation Fund has provided over $2 million to the City of Carlsbad, partnered with the Center of
Excellence for Hazardous Materials Management, for a project to introduce microalgae into test ponds. This project
will determine the potential of microalgae reproduction for biodiesel oil production and test the quality of the oil
in order to meet motor fuel standards. The project plans to assess the availability of this natural resource and the
feasibility of an algae biodiesel industry in New Mexico.
CLEAN ENERGY PROJECTS PROGRAM: The Clean Energy Projects (CEP) program
was established pursuant to legislation passed in 2004 and has since provided $5 million in state funding for capital
projects on a competitive basis to public entities. Recipients include municipalities, counties, state agencies, colleges
and universities, tribal and pueblo governments, and public schools (K-12). Clean energy projects include those
related to renewable energy (solar, wind, geothermal, biomass), energy efficiency in transportation or in governmental
buildings, and clean burning transportation fuels such as CNG, ethanol, and biodiesel. Scores of demonstration
projects of clean energy technologies have been funded using commercially-available technology.
The CEP program offers a variety of benefits to participating public entities, starting with reducing existing energy
usage in a facility or fleet by an average of 15 percent. Solar systems for schools throughout the state are reducing
utility bills, as well as providing new resources for teachers and educational opportunities for our children. The
Village of Angel Fire installed a biodiesel production facility, using restaurant grease waste, as a local fuel source
for its municipal fleet. The Department of Transportation initiated a traffic signal retrofit that positioned the state
for quick takeoff with the federal stimulus funding, expanding the project tenfold. The City of Santa Fe analyzed
its waste at the wastewater treatment plant and found that gas byproducts could be used to fire its process heating
needs. The City of Belen utilized concentrating solar technology with two small Stirling dish engine units to provide
most of its City Hall’s electricity needs. Las Cruces Public Schools incorporated a geothermal heat pump system into
a new school design to reduce heating, cooling, and electricity needs.
ANNUAL REPORT 2010
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