PHOTO CREDIT: SUNPLUGGERS.COM
Exploring White Sands National
Monument near Alamogordo, N.M.

Published June 24, 2010

The New Mexico energy company PNM is inviting customers to weigh in on its planning for the future, including the use of solar electricity and other renewable energy sources.

Should PNM change the amount of energy it gets from renewable, nuclear, coal- and natural-gas-fired power plants? To what degree are customers willing to pay more for a different combination of power sources? What role should efficiency programs play in New Mexico’s energy future?

Customers with thoughts or opinions about the answers to those questions are invited to participate in a yearlong public process that will get under way in communities throughout PNM’s New Mexico service area in the next few weeks.

Beginning Wednesday, June 30, in Rio Rancho, and ending Wednesday, July 21, in Deming, PNM will host a series of meetings in 10 communities to begin a public discussion about the future of PNM’s energy mix.

“As we look to balance affordability, reliability and the need for more clean energy, this is the best opportunity available for both residential and business customers to have their say and to make a difference,” said Pat Vincent-Collawn, PNM's president and chief executive.

Ms. Vincent-Collawn said PNM is hoping that some customers who attend the initial meetings will participate in subsequent meetings during the course of the next year. This informal group of PNM customers, working with company experts, will help formulate PNM’s Integrated Resource Plan for 2011 to 2030. The plan will be filed with the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission next summer.

PNM chose the group New Mexico First to coordinate the yearlong process, including a portion of the kickoff meetings. New Mexico First is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that brings together people from all walks of life to identify practical solutions to the state’s toughest problems. In the organization’s 23-year history, it has engaged more than 6,000 people in the democratic process through deliberation.

“New Mexico First is honored to facilitate this open, public process,” said Heather Balas, president of New Mexico First. “We believe that the citizens of our state hold widely varying opinions about energy issues, and we are pleased to help ensure that those perspectives are voiced.”

For more information on PNM’s Integrated Resource Plan effort, interested people may visit PNM.com.

The kickoff meetings are as follows:

Alamogordo
Thursday, July 15, 2010
First National Bank of Alamogordo - atrium
414 10th St.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Albuquerque
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Albuquerque Public Schools headquarters -
John Milne Community Board Room
6400 Uptown Blvd. NE
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Clayton
Monday, July 12, 2010
Clayton Civic Center
124 N. Front St.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Deming
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Morgan Hall, city of Deming offices,
109 E. Pine St.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Las Vegas
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
N.M. Highlands University -
Sala de Madrid Room
801 University Ave.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Los Lunas
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Village of Los Lunas Council Chambers
660 W. Main St.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Rio Rancho
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Loma Colorado Main Library
755 Loma Colorado Drive NE
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Ruidoso
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Village of Ruidoso Council Chambers
313 Cree Meadows Drive
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Santa Fe
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Santa Fe Community College - Jemez Room
6401 Richards Ave.
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Silver City
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Grant County Commission Offices
1400 Highway 180 East
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.