The New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission is due to receive comments on a community power electric aggregation plan for the city of Concord. The plan aims to serve as the default electricity supplier for all Unitil and Eversource customers on an opt-out basis, offer innovative services and generation rates, operate on a competitive basis, and be self funded through revenues generated by participating customers.

The Maryland Public Service Commission will hold a legislative-style hearing to discuss the semi-annual reports filed by the state’s utilities and the Department of Housing and Community Development for EmPOWER Maryland, the state’s energy efficiency program. The reports analyze the performance of their portfolios for the second half of 2023. The commission also seeks feedback on EMPOWER Maryland plans, as well as status reports of the finance work group, midstream work groups, and appliance recycling rebates.

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority will hold a webinar to discuss the state’s next offshore wind solicitation as well as a request for proposals for a $300 million major component supply chain. NYSERDA has issued a request for information inviting stakeholder feedback on the timing and design of the fifth offshore wind solicitation planned for summer 2024. The RFI suggests procurement of an anticipated minimum of 2.6 gigawatts coordinated with local and private investments in supply chain infrastructure through a pre-qualification process.

The New York Department of Public Service will hold its third technical conference regarding performance metrics for utility thermal energy network, or UTEN, projects pursuant to the 2022 Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act. The law allows for the creation of utility-scale thermal energy plants that would connect several buildings in a shared network. Such networks offer clean energy alternatives to natural gas, allowing utilities to offer customers a renewable energy source to meet their energy needs for heating and cooling. The discussion will focus on the categories of technical and safety/reliability metrics. Prior conferences provided an opportunity for discussion of potential UTEN performance metrics, focusing on the topics of financial, customer, and societal metrics. 22-M-0429

The New York Public Service Commission will hold a meeting of the electric vehicle infrastructure interconnection working group to discuss Consolidated Edison Company of New York’s straw proposal on streamlining queue management in the EV make-ready program. The company was required by a 2023 order to issue a proposal for programs that provide incentives to EV charging stations to offset the cost of bringing power from the grid to the chargers. The proposal aims to facilitate a supportive process for make-ready applicants from first contact with the utility to EV station energization.

The California Energy Commission will hold a workshop to discuss the proposed data collection and analysis for the 2024 Integrated Energy Policy Report, or IEPR, a biennial report containing an assessment of major energy trends and issues and energy policy recommendations. The workshop will include a presentation from commission staff, belonging to the energy assessments division, on proposed changes to its electricity resource plan forms and instructions, such as adding more resource technology subtypes. 24-IEPR-02

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will hold a hearing to discuss Xcel Energy Inc. application for adjustments of retail rates and charges applicable to natural gas services. The company requests an increase in base revenues of $59.03 million, or 9.6 percent, with a return on equity of 10.20 percent. The application would result in an increase of $6.93 for residential customers consuming a monthly average of 73 therms. GR-23-413

The Michigan Public Service Commission seeks comment on draft amendments to renewable energy plan filing requirements following legislation enacted last year, which established a new clean energy standard and updated Michigan’s renewable energy standard, or RPS. The legislation increases the RPS for electric providers from 15 percent through 2029, to 50 percent in 2030 and 60 percent by 2035. In February, the commission set dates for all Michigan electricity providers to file amended renewable energy plans, or REPs, in 2024 and 2025. U-21568