The U.S. Energy Department on July 15 launched a free web-based platform that gives local governments the ability to fast-track review and approval of residential solar installation permits. The Solar Automated Permit Processing Plus, or SolarAPP+, aims to reduce barriers to solar deployment, spur economic development, and support renewables energy goals. The tool, developed by…...
The Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority on July 14 established a nine-year program to support the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The initiative provides a combination of incentives for charging infrastructure and accompanying rate design offerings to develop a sustainable, zero-emission vehicle market. Eversource Energy and The United Illuminating Company will administer the program…...
The Florida Public Service Commission approved settlement agreements allowing Gulf Power Company to recover $13.2 million in costs related to the utility’s COVID-19 measures and Florida Public Utilities Company and the Florida Division of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (FPUC) to recover nearly $2.1 million. The approval includes a regulatory asset accounting mechanism that permits utilities to…...
PJM Interconnection LLC’s Board of Managers has approved a proposal aimed to reform the minimum offer price rule, or MOPR, in the regional capacity market that PJM operates across 13 states and the District of Columbia. Out of nine proposals presented by the grid operator and its stakeholders, the board selected PJM’s proposal finding that…...
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has awarded two offshore wind projects totaling nearly 2.7 gigawatts to Denmark-based Orsted A/S’ Ocean Wind II and Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind LLC, a joint venture of EDF Renewables North America and Shell New Energies US LLC. The selection, which represents the largest combined offshore wind award in…...
U.S President Joe Biden on June 26 announced an agreement with a bipartisan group of senators on a $1.2 trillion infrastructure framework including $73 billion for power infrastructure. Among the key initiatives, the plan would create a new Grid Development Authority at the Department of Energy, deploy long distance, high voltage transmission, integrate the highest…...
Customer-owned renewable generation installations across Florida increased by about 52 percent from 2019 to 2020, reaching 90,552 interconnections, according to electric utility reports filed with the Florida Public Service Commission. Electric generation capacity from customer-sited systems rose by 62 percent over the same period to reach 837,160 kilowatts, showing that solar continues to be the…...
The California Public Utilities Commission on June 24 directed utilities to procure 11,500 megawatts of new generation from clean energy sources. This is the largest clean energy procurement ordered to date and is a step towards California’s goal of transitioning to 100 percent clean electricity by 2045. The resources, required to come online between 2023…...
The California Public Utilities Commission on June 24 set new guidelines and rules adding to existing directives to improve preparation and access to resources during utilities’ Public Power Shutoff, or PSPS, events ahead of the wildfire season. The commission requires electric investor-owned utilities to take a results-based approach to PSPS events, which involves proactive de-energization…...
The California Public Utilities Commission on June 24 opened a proceeding to modernize the state’s electric grid, in order to accommodate the growing number of distributed energy resources, including electric vehicle charging. The proceeding will maximize ratepayer value through a range of actions including clarifying grid roles and responsibilities, charging infrastructure forecasting, and community involvement.…
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has announced that it will reexamine whether demand response participation in wholesale energy markets as a component of distributed energy resource, or DER, aggregations should be subject to state opt-out rules. The move sets aside the agency’s determination in Order No. 2222-A, issued in March, that the opt-out provision does…...
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) have formed a joint-federal state task force to explore transmission-related issues. The first-of-its-kind task force will identify barriers inhibiting planning and development of transmission infrastructure, which is key to facilitating the transition towards clean energy resources, and potential solutions to…...
