National Grid will hold a stakeholder meeting to receive input on a draft scoping plan pursuant to a joint proposal adopted by the New York Public Service Commission to further the objectives of the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. The order directed the company to complete a study evaluating how its businesses may evolve to support the emissions reduction and renewable energy goals of law, which calls for 40 percent emissions reductions from 1990 levels by 2030, and a carbon-free power system by 2040. The study, to be submitted by the end of March 2023, should consider any emission reduction goals the company has independently adopted and customer bill impacts resulting from strategies to reduce emissions associated with the use of gas delivered in its service territory. 20-E-0380

The Illinois Commerce Commission is due to receive reply comments on a request for information seeking input on Illinois public utilities’ plan to apply for federal dollars under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The information would assist the state of Illinois in assessing the eligibility of these utilities and to study how the state can help them in securing these federal funds. The funding would facilitate the implementation of a clean and efficient grid at the minimum cost to ratepayers. The 2021 law provides $550 billion in federal funding for the enhancement of public utility infrastructure. READ MORE

The Montana Department of Environmental Quality will host a virtual listening session with the Montana Department of Transportation to discuss a joint plan for the deployment of electric vehicle infrastructure in the state. The plan sets the state’s strategy, vision and goals for using $43 million in federal funds, over the next five years, that were allocated through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure, or NEVI, program. The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides states with $5 billion funding over five years to build electric vehicle charging stations under the NEVI program. READ MORE

The Utah Public Service Commission will hold a scheduling conference on a proceeding regarding actions to reform the integrated resource plan guidelines. Last month, the Utah Citizens Advocating Renewable Energy requested the commission to review the guidelines, following a commission order finding that PacifiCorp failed to substantially comply with the guidelines during its development of the 2021 IRP. The group said that the guidelines currently in use were codified in 1992 and are not well-suited to economic, environmental, and societal conditions that have developed over the past three decades. 22-035-35

The California Energy Commission will discuss research activities for a long-duration energy storage project awarded to the regents of the University of California, Merced under its Electric Program Investment Charge, or EPIC. The agenda includes the presentation of a study to understand how the value of long-duration energy storage changes under 39 scenarios with different generation mixes, transmission expansion, storage costs, and storage mandates. Previous studies have indicated that greenhouse gas reductions of 90 percent or more in the electricity sector are achievable with current technology, which includes a mix of solar photovoltaics, wind resources – both in-state and out-of-state – and existing energy storage technologies such as lithium-ion batteries and pumped hydro or compressed air. However, reaching a 100 percent emissions reduction goal may require newer technologies, including different types of long-duration energy storage. California enacted legislation in 2018 requiring all retail electricity to be supplied by zero-carbon resources by 2045.

The California Energy Commission will hold a meeting of the disadvantaged communities advisory group established pursuant to the 2015 Clean Energy and Pollution Reduction Act. The group reviews clean energy programs and policies to ensure they benefit disadvantaged communities, including tribal and rural communities. The agenda will describe and present 2022 priority areas considered for adoption including transportation electrification, building decarbonization and electrification, gas transition, and distributed energy resources.