Smart Grid
California Senators Propose to Increase State’s Renewable Energy Targets in Support of Governor’s 50-50-50 Goal On February 10, 2015, California Democrat Senator Kevin de León publicly announced four bills as part of the California Climate Leadership bill package to support the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and establish objectives beyond its 2020 emissions reduction targets…....
A Wisconsin court decision rejecting restrictive net metering policies reflects the acknowledged need for state policies that encourage customer-sited electricity generation. Wisconsin is not a leading state for solar photovoltaic (PV) installations — its 19 MW of installed solar capacity ranks 27th in the country, paling in comparison to California’s 8.5+ GW, and Arizona’s nearly…...
Senators in the Environmental and Public Works Committee presented dueling cost-benefit arguments for the climate change mitigation proposal that split between Republicans and Democrats, despite widespread state opposition to the rule. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released the Clean Power Plan (CPP) proposal on June 2, 2014, to address greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from existing…...
A new Massachusetts energy bill aims to enhance energy diversity by rate-basing natural gas pipeline additions and mandating offshore wind procurement. A new energy bill filed by Rep. Patricia Haddad (D-MA) in the Massachusetts House of Representatives on January 16 proposes fundamental changes to the state’s energy landscape through increased renewable generation and natural gas…...
High clearing prices in ISO-NE’s ninth forward capacity auction will stimulate new resource build-out to meet future demand. FCM Auction Attracts New Resources to Meet Low Reserve Margin The New England Independent System Operator’s (ISO-NE) ninth annual Forward Capacity Market (FCM) auction to acquire resources to meet June 1, 2018 through May 31, 2019 electricity…...
The DOE’s new SunShot Program funding could help lower costs across the solar PV value chain to help remove barriers to entry and de-risk solar energy grid integration. On January 29, 2015, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced more than $59M in funding to expedite commercialization of innovative solar manufacturing technologies and support multi-year solar…...
The DOI’s fourth competitive renewable energy lease sale on the Outer Continental Shelf has nearly doubled the federal offshore acreage available for commercial-scale wind energy projects. Despite the expanded acreage, the U.S. offshore wind industry continues to face unique challenges of high costs, mitigation of environmental impacts, project installation, and grid interconnection, and continued federal offshore…...
Governor Cuomo’s 2015 Opportunity Agenda reiterates his commitment to early stage energy technology and grid resiliency investments. In his 2015 State of the State address on January 21, 2015, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo proposed significant initiatives to advance clean energy, environmental protection, and climate resilience efforts that support the Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) proceeding…....
The DOE’s continued support of advanced vehicle technology research, development, and demonstration projects helps expand offerings, cut costs, and improve sales. On January 22, 2015, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced more than $55M to develop and deploy advanced vehicle technologies aimed to improve fuel efficiency and reduce petroleum consumption. The funding opportunity announcement (FOA) supports DOE’s 2012 EV…...
FERC has approved PJM’s request for temporary relief from the $1,000/MWh cost-based offer cap to address winter price spikes that could cause generators’ marginal costs to exceed the offer cap. On January 16, 2015, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved PJM Interconnection LLC’s (PJM) Section 206 filing to raise the $1,000/MWh energy offer cap…...
Wholesale Demand Response Hinges on Order 745 Decision Demand response (DR) participation and compensation in organized electricity markets has grown over the previous five years, in part due to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Order 745. Order 745 sets compensation levels for DR in wholesale energy markets; however, its future validity is uncertain with…...
EPA emissions rules and legislative actions will impact every aspect of the energy value chain in 2015 Key Takeaways: Policies impacting energy independence and associated environmental impacts are coming head-to-head at the federal level Legislators will aim to settle long-debated oil and gas infrastructure and export bills and will use legistive authorities to delay, defund,…...