The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Nov. 9 approved ISO New England Inc.’s proposal to revise the calculation of the economic life of a generator that seeks to retire or permanently leave the capacity market. The revision establishes that the economic life of such a resource will be the evaluation period that maximizes the net…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Nov. 8 released final state plan requirements to implement its 2015 standards for ground-level ozone. The rule applies to nonattainment areas and 13 northeastern states that comprise the ozone transport region. The rule allows flexibilities for states to consider factors outside their control, such as international pollution. The EPA…
PJM Interconnection LLC’s wholesale power markets work although “not perfectly,” and are faced with new challenges that potentially threaten their viability, according to Nov. 8 report from Monitoring Analytics LLC. The monitor questioned the ability of markets and the market-based regulatory construct to coexist with efforts to increase the role of renewable resources via nonmarket…
NorthWestern Energy plans to participate in the Energy Imbalance Market operated by the California Independent System Operator Corporation by April 2021, according to a Nov. 8 press release. The market is an automated system that secures the lowest-cost energy to serve real-time customer demand over a broad region spanning across multiple western states. The company…
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission issued a final policy clarifying that third-party electric vehicle charging is not considered resale or redistribution of power, in a bid to remove regulatory uncertainty and support the continued build-out of charging infrastructure, according to a Nov. 8 press release. The commission directed electric distribution companies to revise tariffs to…
Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, issued a solicitation for 800 megawatts or more of offshore wind for the state’s large-scale contracts towards meeting the goal of 2,400 megawatts by 2030, according to a Nov. 8 announcement by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. The goal supports the state’s Clean Energy Standard which…
The U.S. District Court for the District of Montana on Nov. 8 halted construction of TransCanada Corp.’s proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline, vacating the 2017 decision that issued a presidential permit for the project. The court said that that the U.S. State Department did not take a “hard look” at the environmental impacts of the…
U.S. electric utilities installed nearly 71 million advanced meters, accounting for about 47 percent of meters that were operational in 2016, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s annual report on demand response and advanced metering. The report, issued by commission staff on Nov. 7, found that several states are considering large-scale smart meter projects,…
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Nov. 7 reinstated a 2009 action clarifying “project aggregation” for the New Source Review permitting program that governs emission permits for building new or significantly retrofitted industrial facilities including power plants. Under the policy, the agency will combine multiple changes to a facility into a single project for permitting…
Pacific Gas and Electric Company proposed to create a commercial electric vehicle charging rate class, which would include two new rate schedules – EV-Small and EV-Large – to accelerate EV deployment and support for commercial customers, according to a Nov. 6 filing with the California Public Utilities Commission. The charges would feature a monthly subscription…
Clean energy ballot measures were largely defeated across the nation including Arizona, Washington, and Colorado, with exceptions in Nevada and Florida. Nevada voters passed Question 6, requiring utilities to acquire at least 50 percent renewable electricity by 2030, but the measure must now pass another round of voting in 2020. Nevadans rejected Question 3, which…
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio established the PowerForward Collaborative, a utility workgroup charged with monitoring the marketplace to propel the state along its roadmap of grid modernization. The collaborative will examine issues related to electric vehicles and deployment of non-wires alternatives. In addition, its two workgroups will consider integrated distribution planning and data access issues associated with grid modernization. The PowerForward roadmap aims to create a regulatory paradigm that will allow innovation to reach all customers. The plan envisions the modern grid as an open-access platform that helps applications interface seamlessly as they evolve and a marketplace that advances organically, allowing customers to buy innovative products and services from entities of their choice.
