The New York Public Service Commission is due to receive comments on the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s implementation plan for the resale of renewable energy certificates of Tier 2 resources under the state’s Clean Energy Standard to the voluntary market. In October 2020, the agency established a competitive, five-year Tier 2 program to preserve existing renewable baseline generation as part of modifications to the standard to achieve the state’s goal of sourcing 70 percent of its electricity from renewable energy by 2030 and set the state on a trajectory to a zero-carbon power sector by 2040. The program aims to maximize the contributions and potential of projects that commenced operations before 2015, including those rolling off their renewable portfolio standard contracts, and to avoid having those resources seek value for their renewable energy attributes in external markets. The Tier 2 re-sale would help stimulate the voluntary market by placing downward pressure on voluntary REC prices. 15-E-0302, 15-01168

The Maryland Public Service Commission will discuss climate equity and low- to moderate-income goals and programs as part of EmPOWER Maryland, the state’s energy efficiency program. The current goal structure for EmPOWER is mandated by legislation through the end of the 2021-2023 program cycle and the commission is required to provide the General Assembly with recommendations on future goals and cost-effectiveness tests by July 1, 2022. An order issued in December 2020 authorized the transition to the next three-year program cycle and approved various proposals by the program administrators to continue operating the core energy efficiency programs in 2021-2023.

The Transportation and Climate Initiative jurisdictions are due to receive input on a model implementation plan and the other draft documents related to their proposed regional program aimed to cap emissions from transportation fuels. The jurisdictions – Connecticut, Massachusetts, RhodeIsland, and the District of Columbia – released a finished model rule that incorporates public input received since the issuance of the draft in March. The model rule provides a common framework for each participating jurisdiction to develop compliance requirements for fuel suppliers, in order to ensure that consistent approaches are adopted to regulate and enforce a cap on emissions. Under the framework, created in consultation with the other collaborating states, each member will detail the steps and processes it will pursue, including regulations and legal mechanisms, to achieve the program goals. READ MORE

PJM Interconnection LLC is due to receive applications in response to its solicitation for potential offshore wind transmission solutions. The solicitation seeks options for interrelated components of an open access transmission solution, including upgrades to the existing grid; extension of the onshore transmission grid closer to offshore wind sites; and offshore substation interconnections to reap the benefits of a networked offshore grid. The move stems from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities’ request to integrate the state’s offshore wind policy objectives into the grid operator’s transmission planning through a competitive solicitation process. The solicitation makes New Jersey the first state to align offshore wind policy with the regional grid operator’s transmission planning.
Update: This date has been extended to Sept. 17. READ MORE

The California Independent System Operator Corp. will host a meeting of the RC West Oversight Committee, which provides guidance and fosters consensus on reliability compliance. RC West, launched in July 2019, is the reliability coordinator for 42 balancing authorities and transmission operators in the western U.S. The meeting will discuss updates pertaining to RC West’s operations, technology, as well as working group. A reliability coordinator oversees compliance with federal and regional grid standards, and can identify measures to avoid or mitigate system emergencies in day-ahead or real-time operations.

The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission will hold a meeting of the performance-based regulation, or PBR, working group to discuss the preliminary version of Hawaiian Electric Companies’ PBR webpage. In June, the commission approved a portfolio of performance incentive mechanisms, scorecards, and metrics for the utility as part of a PBR framework adopted in December 2020. The performance mechanisms provide financial incentives and penalties aimed to spur exemplary performance in achieving clean energy goals. The meeting is intended to provide structured feedback on the PBR scorecards and reported metrics webpage and discuss potential integration of the PBR and key performance metrics webpages to streamline the information and avoid overlapping reports. 2018-0088

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will consider Plum Creek Wind Farm LLC’s application for a 414 megawatt wind project in Cottonwood, Murray, and Redwood counties, and an associated 345 kilovolt transmission line to connect the facility to the grid. The commission will evaluate whether the proposed project’s environmental impact statement is adequate and whether it should issue a certificate of need, as well as site and route permits for the project. Plum Creek, an affiliate of National Grid Renewables, formerly known as Geronimo Energy LLC, anticipates that the project will be in-service in late 2022. CN-18-699