Following an appeals court ruling, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is reconsidering its approval of the Southeast Energy Exchange Market, a real-time market that includes Dominion Energy South Carolina, Duke Energy Carolinas, Southern Co. and 21 other participants.
Based on a July ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, FERC on Friday said it is seeking comments on whether SEEM is a “loose power pool” and whether its geographic limitations for members violates the open access principles of FERC Order 888.
SEEM participants can buy and sell electricity to each other in 15-minute blocks using available transmission capacity at no cost.
A loose power pool is defined as a multilateral arrangement with discounted or special transmission rates. In its order, FERC asked parties to explain whether SEEM’s lack of pancaked transmission rates for trades among its members should be considered a discounted rate, making the market a loose power pool. A loose power pool must allow for open, non-discriminatory membership, FERC noted.
In its ruling, the appeals court said there were at least 65 trading partners with SEEM members that would be unable to participate in the market because of a requirement that members own a generating source or have load within its footprint.
FERC Commissioner Allison Clements — who voted against the agency’s initial SEEM decisions in 2021 — dissented from the briefing order because she said it is clear SEEM should be deemed a loose power pool.
“When SEEM walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, additional briefing is unnecessary to confirm that it is, in fact, a duck,” Clements said. “The majority’s refusal to call SEEM a loose power pool in this order only forestalls the inevitable end of SEEM. It wastes the valuable time of stakeholders we ask to engage in the proceedings and allows SEEM’s construct for pooling transmission service to operate despite its illegality under the Federal Power Act.”
Initial briefs are due 60 days after the order was issued, with replies due 30 days later.
SEEM cleared 704,000 MWh last year, with monthly trading volumes increasing when six Florida utilities joined the market in July 2023, according to a May report from Potomac Economics, the SEEM auditor.
“This is a favorable development that indicates increased interest and confidence in the market,” the auditor said.
SEEM’s original members include Alabama Power; Georgia Power; Mississippi Power; Associated Electric Cooperative; Dalton Utilities; Dominion Energy South Carolina; Duke Energy Carolinas; Duke Energy Progress; Louisville Gas & Electric and Kentucky Utilities; North Carolina Municipal Power Agency Number 1; PowerSouth Energy Cooperative; North Carolina Electric Membership; Tennessee Valley Authority; Georgia System Operations; Georgia Transmission; Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia; Oglethorpe Power; and South Carolina Public Service Authority.
A year ago, six Florida utilities joined the market: Seminole Electric Cooperative; Tampa Electric; Duke Energy Florida; Florida Power; TEA Gainesville Regional Utilities; and TEA Jacksonville Electric Authority.
Organizations that asked the appeals court to overturn FERC’s approval of the market are: Advanced Energy United, Energy Alabama, Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, Partnership for Southern Equity, Sierra Club, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, South Carolina Coastal Conservation League, Southface Institute, Vote Solar, Natural Resources Defense Council, Solar Energy Industries Association and Clean Energy Buyers Association.
