Over the last 20 years, customers have embraced the renewable generation that MidAmerican has invested in. From the first wind farm’s humble beginnings in Buena Vista and Sac counties in 2004 to today’s portfolio of more than 3,400 turbines across Iowa, MidAmerican has become a renewable energy leader.

 

In 2016, MidAmerican set an ambitious goal – to generate renewable energy equal to 100% of our Iowa retail customers’ annual usage.

 

In 2017, to track progress against that goal, MidAmerican worked with customers, regulators and environmental stakeholders to implement the GreenAdvantage program. The program offered a verifiable way to track the renewable energy generated by MidAmerican. Instead of selling renewable energy certificates (RECs) on the market, MidAmerican retired them, allowing businesses, industrial facilities and residents to claim that renewable energy and advance their own sustainability goals.

 

On behalf of its customers, MidAmerican continued to invest in wind and solar energy, striving to reach its 100% renewable goal. Thanks in part to a robust wind resource, in 2022, MidAmerican achieved its goal and verified through the GreenAdvantage program that we generated the equivalent of 100% of our Iowa retail customers’ annual energy needs using renewable energy sources.

 

Today, customers have shifted to evaluating energy generation on a carbon-free basis – including sources like nuclear in addition to renewable energy like wind and solar. To support changing customer preferences and priorities, MidAmerican is redefining the GreenAdvantage program to track carbon-free energy, as well as energy generated from renewable sources. The adjustment includes retiring emission-free energy certificates (EFECs) in addition to RECs originally included in the program.

 

In 2024, MidAmerican delivered the equivalent of 100% carbon-free energy to serve our Iowa customers’ electricity usage. Renewable energy makes up 91.7% of that energy delivered over the course of the year.

 

Annually, by April 1, MidAmerican files its Iowa Fuel Report with the Iowa Utilities Commission, detailing the percentage mix of fuel and energy inputs used to produce electricity, including the percentages of electricity produced by coal, nuclear energy, natural gas, oil and resources purchased from other companies. This report is the basis for the GreenAdvantage calculation.