Regulation & Policy: Page 52
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FERC denies MISO request to extend Order 841 compliance deadline to 2025
FERC said MISO had "not shown good cause" for granting its request, which cited potential conflicts with its members' decarbonization goals under the current deadline.
By Jason Plautz • Updated May 18, 2021 -
Kendall Davis, Dive Design
Vineyard Wind Project PermittingVineyard 800 MW offshore wind farm first US utility-scale facility to get federal construction approval
A federal agency cleared Vineyard Wind to install up to 84 wind turbines 15 miles off the coast of Martha's Vineyard in a move the Interior Department says will open the door to 80,000 clean energy jobs in the country.
By Emma Penrod • May 12, 2021 -
Explore the Trendline➔
adamkaz via Getty Images
TrendlineThe Energy Transition to Renewables
New policy and business actions are giving a significant boost to renewable energy in the U.S., but opposition is growing and grid interconnection, permitting, labor and other challenges remain.
By Utility Dive staff -
FERC deems Duke, Southern SEEM proposal 'deficient', sends utilities back to the drawing board
Federal regulators asked utilities to clarify how exactly the proposal will improve existing energy transactions in the Southeast, and for greater transparency in how the market changes will work.
By Catherine Morehouse • May 12, 2021 -
Photo illustration by Danielle Ternes/Utility Dive; photograph by yucelyilmaz via Getty Images
Federal cybersecurity agency left in the dark during Colonial Pipeline's initial response
With an agency mandate to share threat information with critical infrastructure, notification delays can stall industry response.
By Samantha Schwartz • May 12, 2021 -
Szekely, Pedro. (2017). "Chicago Skyline" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
Chicago explores alternatives to ComEd for electricity in support of equitable climate goals
The city is assessing options for its electric utility agreement for the first time in 30 years, aiming to support its new clean electricity and carbon reduction goals, Chicago's chief sustainability officer said.
By Katie Pyzyk • May 11, 2021 -
John Moore via Getty Images
Duke 'optimistic' on seeing broad North Carolina energy bill in 2021 amid Democratic, NGO exclusions
The utility's optimism is based on months of closed-door stakeholder negotiations with Republican leadership, industry groups and others, but ratepayer advocates and environmentalists have been excluded.
By Catherine Morehouse • May 11, 2021 -
Fotolia
Xcel Energy issues broad performance metrics report, setting markers for future progress
The Minnesota-based utility graded itself on everything from customer relations to load shifting, after years of discussions with state regulators and stakeholder groups.
By Scott Van Voorhis • May 10, 2021 -
Ron Jenkins via Getty Images
NRG discloses nearly $1B hit from Texas grid collapse
The power producer is working to recover some of is losses from the devastating winter storm that wreaked havoc with the Lone Star State's electric grid and gas pipelines.
By Scott Van Voorhis • May 7, 2021 -
Fotolia
Arizona regulators toss 3-year effort for 100% clean energy mandate
A proposal to create an energy storage target, a 100% clean energy by 2050 mandate and a slew of other decarbonization priorities was rejected 3-2 by the Arizona Corporation Commission, despite support from utilities and others.
By Iulia Gheorghiu • May 7, 2021 -
Justin Sullivan via Getty Images
PG&E gets greenlight for $7.5B wildfire securitization, but consumer advocates raise challenges
Utility securitizations generally involve costs that ratepayers would be paying for anyway, but "that is not the situation here," said April Rose Maurath Sommer, executive and legal director of the Wild Tree Foundation.
By Kavya Balaraman • May 7, 2021 -
Exelon CEO: Replacing nuclear with renewables, storage to meet carbon goals could cost Illinois $80B
The company plans to shut down its Byron and Dresden nuclear plants in Illinois later this year and sees a state solution to avert the closures as more likely in the near term than a federal solution.
By Larry Pearl • May 6, 2021 -
Permission granted by Avangrid
States want federal cash, not rules, to propel clean energy, Colorado, other officials say
Four Western state officials say the Biden administration's infrastructure plan can offer much-needed funds for the energy transition.
By Jason Plautz • May 5, 2021 -
Opinion
A grand bargain for decarbonizing the US electricity sector
The fundamental political challenge for a zero carbon power sector likely boils down to the need for compromise between states that have long-term greenhouse gas emission reductions goals and those that do not.
By Fredrich Kahrl and Jim Williams • May 4, 2021 -
Natacha Kiler
Deep DiveAs utilities match CCAs on price, aggregators increase climate action, grow economies of scale to compete
With stranded costs and other charges keeping CCA bills and utility bills comparable, municipal and community aggregations are challenging utilities on renewables and climate targets to grow their customer base.
By Herman K. Trabish • May 4, 2021 -
Brian Tucker/Utility Dive
Dems weigh legislative approaches to advance Biden infrastructure plan, see room for bipartisan action
Two House Democrats last week said they expect most of the president's $2.3 trillion plan to advance in Congress through reconciliation, but see opportunities for smaller, bipartisan measures, too.
By Jason Plautz • May 3, 2021 -
Equity, security and load: FERC conference considers the challenges and potential of electrification
U.S. electricity load could double by 2050. The industry is focused on how to meet that need equitably and securely, panelists at a recent technical conference said.
By Robert Walton • May 3, 2021 -
Danielle Ternes
OpinionPower markets are not ready to maximize infrastructure investments
The returns on capital generated from the investments made by the Biden administration's jobs plan will depend on how well they are leveraged within power markets, the author writes.
By Ben Hertz-Shargel • April 30, 2021 -
CAISO launches stakeholder process to optimize market for storage
The ISO is continuing its push to overhaul a market designed for fossil fuels.
By Jason Plautz • April 30, 2021 -
Permission granted by Clark Construction/Tim Rice Photography
Washington passes 'cap-and-invest' legislation, giving utilities incentive to further decarbonize
The Climate Commitment Act, once signed into law, would give Washington the nation's second economywide carbon cap system.
By Kavya Balaraman • April 29, 2021 -
Permission granted by PJM Interconnection
PJM proposes to end FERC MOPR policy that raised prices for state-subsidized resources
Under the grid operator's plan, the minimum offer price rule would no longer apply to state-subsidized resources in capacity auctions. But some competitive suppliers are calling for a replacement market design.
By Catherine Morehouse • April 29, 2021 -
Decades-long decline in rural infrastructure could pose barrier to coal transition, NGO panel finds
A new report by Resources for the Future and Environmental Defense Fund suggests policymakers must adopt a multipronged approach to ensure an equitable energy transition. Experts say the U.S. has limited time to act.
By Emma Penrod • April 28, 2021 -
Retrieved from Twitter.
Deep DiveBiden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan meets power system needs but leaves room for political dealing
The Biden infrastructure spend would rapidly transition the U.S. power sector in ways utilities like, but Congress is expected to seek changes.
By Herman K. Trabish • April 28, 2021 -
Fotolia
Opinion4 common myths about performance-based regulation
Misconceptions about PBR abound, and may keep America's regulatory community from making sound decisions about its proper role, the author writes.
By Mark Newton Lowry • April 27, 2021 -
CPUC judge orders SoCalGas to return ratepayer funds but stops short of imposing financial penalty
"It is no different than if the Commission found SoCalGas guilty of robbery but then only required them to give back the stolen money," per the Public Advocates Office, which had asked regulators to fine SoCalGas $255 million.
By Kavya Balaraman • April 27, 2021 -
States ask FERC to eliminate MOPR, grant more flexibility in pursuing alternatives to PJM capacity market
New Jersey and Illinois are actively considering using the fixed resource requirement as a way to pursue clean energy outside the PJM Interconnection's capacity market.
By Catherine Morehouse • April 26, 2021
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