Sustainable FERC Project’s Post

FERC is moving mountains with this regulation. More than people know... Not only is transmission reform needed to accelerate the energy transition, in some cases it's needed to advance the transition at all. A second great article by Canary Media Inc. shows how PJM must continue to operate (at the expense of ratepayers) uncompetitive coal plants because of lapses in grid management. These grids cannot accept new grid-tied batteries and renewable assets potentially totaling close to 20GW of replacement. Second article here: https://lnkd.in/ekjE6Ptt Once the transmissions upgrades are complete, that bottleneck correction should yield instantaneous markets for utility-scale solar, wind and storage. Azimuth Advisory Services www.azimuth-ventures.com #aas #azimuthadvisoryservices #gridmanagement #zombiecoal

"The new federal rule, which was two years in the making, requires grid operators around the country to identify needs 20 years into the future, taking into account factors like changes in the energy mix, the growing number of states that require wind and solar power and the risks of extreme weather." Read more reporting below:

For better or for worse -- some will always contend for worse -- the Biden Administration is taking a much more hands-on philosophy when it comes to regulating the private sector. I hope to do a lead story on that subject soon for my weekly business newsletter, The Rising Tide. The latest: A little-known but powerful regulator has finalized sweeping new rules designed to expand the construction of big power lines and bring more renewable energy to U.S. homes and businesses. The rules approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees wholesale electricity markets, are expected to make it easier for big regional transmission projects to get approval. FERC approved two rules Monday, one that will require companies that produce and transmit electricity to weigh factors such as supply and demand over at least two decades and another that addresses permitting of critical projects in areas that lack adequate transmission capacity. The rule requiring long-term planning is “the biggest single action by the federal government to advance transmission,” said Rob Gramlich, president of Grid Strategies, a power consulting firm. The long-term plans will need to account for the impact of extreme weather tied to climate change along with the cost of projects. By expanding transmission capacity, regions hit by weather disasters will be more resilient because they can access power from other parts of the country. Most utilities already plan for future demand and other contingencies, but few do so decades in the future. What has resulted is a largely ad-hoc national grid that has at times left utilities behind the curve amid shifting power generation technologies, demand and destructive weather events fueled by climate change. In Georgia, the state’s main utility, Georgia Power, has increased demand projections sixteen-fold and plans to burn more natural gas to meet that demand. Virginia’s largest utility, Dominion Energy, which supplies electricity to most of the state’s data centers, expects their power use to quadruple over the next 15 years, representing 40% of the utility’s demand in the state. “Our country is facing an unprecedented surge in demand for affordable electricity while confronting extreme weather threats to the reliability of our grid and trying to stay one step ahead of the massive technological changes we are seeing in our society,” FERC Chairman Willie Phillips said Monday.   Republican Commissioner Mark Christie voted against the long-term planning rule, which he said is unfair to consumers and oversteps FERC’s authority. Across the U.S., plans for myriad new power projects, largely wind and solar, are languishing due to delays in their ability to connect to the grid. The backlog of new power projects, mostly solar, wind and battery storage, seeking to connect to the grid jumped by 30% in 2023 from the previous year, according to a recent report by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Improved regional transmission planning in MISO South will bolster system resiliency to increasingly frequent extreme weather events and reduce electricity costs for Louisianans. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has an opportunity to finalize a strong regional transmission planning and cost allocation rule on May 13 that can deliver huge benefits for the Delta region. "By uplifting the benefits of long-term regional transmission projects, FERC's final rule would relieve the deadlock and confusion that regulators experience when determining whether to support long-term planning while helping ensure the affordability of power for the region. Overall, a strong final rule from FERC would help ensure there is no backsliding when the lines for our region are planned." -Andy Kowalczyk, Transmission Director for the Southern Renewable Energy Association. More from Andy in this great piece via The Lens NOLA: https://lnkd.in/eaS5qZrs

Decarbonizing the power sector will require accelerating transmission buildout. On May 13, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved two rules: The first will require generators and transmission operators to weigh factors like supply & demand over at least 20 years. The second addresses permitting of critical projects in areas lacking enough transmission capacity This sweeping reform will help transition the country’s power sector away from fossil fuels and help integrate more renewables into the grid. Read Canary Media's detailed coverage of the reform: https://lnkd.in/g4QmgcUn

California’s clean energy resilience proved its worth during extreme weather events like the recent heat dome. Solar, wind, and battery storage in particular helped keep the power grid stable, preventing long-lasting large-scale outages despite soaring temperatures. As extreme weather events become more frequent, it's clear that focusing on bolstering infrastructure will be key to ensuring power stability across the country. Strengthening grid resilience should be a national priority to support the ongoing transition to renewable energy. Akshat Kasliwal PA Consulting #CleanEnergy #GridResilience #Renewables #California

Closing the three units at its Braunig Power Station is part of CPS’ overall plan to cut harmful emissions while adding more wind, battery and solar capacity.

US approves major transmission project in Nevada Sept 9 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Monday said it had approved a major transmission line in Nevada that will run hundreds of miles along the state's border with California and be able to provide power to about 5 million homes. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT The milestone is the administration's latest effort to speed approval of major clean energy projects as part of its climate change and jobs agendas. President Joe Biden has a goal to decarbonize the U.S. electricity grid by 2035, a feat that will require massive investments in new transmission to move clean wind and solar energy to population centers... https://lnkd.in/gFi2A9YN

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) passes new rules to require grid operators to conduct long-term planning on transmission requirements, taking into account reliability and changing resource mix. Sluggish grid investment is both a major bottleneck to adding new renewables to the electricity mix as well as a source of risk to reliability. https://lnkd.in/g4QmgcUn

Thank you Thomas Shepstone and Tricia Curtis! A complete and concise summary of the results of forcing wind and solar on the American Grid and hoodwinking the public. #Climatepolicies #EnergyReality #ElectricityGeneration #Gridreliability #EnergySobriety