Aug 8, 2019   SOURCE: BusinessWire

CRA Helps Liberty Utilities Develop Their Integrated Resource Plan

Charles River Associates (NASDAQ: CRAI), a worldwide leader in providing economic, financial, and management consulting services, today announced CRA supported Empire District Electric Company, now Liberty Utilities, in the development of its Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), which calls for the planned replacement of a coal-fired power plant with a combination of wind, solar, storage, and distributed resource investments.

Liberty Utilities filed its 2019 IRP with the Missouri Public Service Commission on June 28.

CRA Vice President Jim McMahon stated, “Liberty’s resource plan reflects the changing planning environment for utilities today. The utility is planning to retire a smaller coal-fired unit that is struggling to compete with lower cost resources in the market and plans to replace that capacity primarily with wind, solar, and storage. Liberty is also planning investments in distributed resource technology where certain substation investments may be avoided as a result.”

Liberty held multiple stakeholder meetings throughout the year-long process. Stakeholders provided valuable input on energy efficiency, resource options, and grid modernization. McMahon further stated, “The stakeholder input and feedback was critical to the plan’s development. Recommendations from stakeholders were directly reflected in resource choices and ultimately helped guide the preferred plan selection.”

The utility’s filing can be found at https://efis.psc.mo.gov/mpsc/Docket.asp?caseno=EO-2019-0049.

About CRA's Energy Practice
CRA’s Energy Practice blends decades of industry knowledge with world-class economic and analytical expertise. Investors, executives, and litigators from across the energy sector have turned to CRA for expert advice in hundreds of successful engagements. CRA’s expertise is grounded in a comprehensive understanding of the energy sector, including electricity and gas markets, litigation and regulatory support, market analytics and strategy, energy asset and enterprise valuation, and energy trading and risk management.

About Charles River Associates (CRA)
Charles River Associates® is a leading global consulting firm specializing in economic, financial, and management consulting services. CRA advises clients on economic and financial matters pertaining to litigation and regulatory proceedings, and guides corporations through critical business strategy and performance-related issues. Since 1965, clients have engaged CRA for its unique combination of functional expertise and industry knowledge, and for its objective solutions to complex problems. Headquartered in Boston, CRA has offices throughout the world. Detailed information about Charles River Associates, a registered trade name of CRA International, Inc., is available at www.crai.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.