Regulation & Policy

FERC commissioners respond to elevated power outage risks across two-thirds of US

Two commissioners pointed to the renewable energy shift as a key culprit in the "reliability crisis" while others called out extreme weather and drought.

By Ethan Howland • May 20, 2022

FERC to monitor gas, power markets for manipulation as forward summer electricity prices jump up to 233%

Summertime forward power prices are up between 77% and 223% from a year ago, driven by higher gas prices, FERC staff said Thursday.

By Ethan Howland • May 20, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

Cybersecurity of the Grid

While cyberthreats to the power sector are expanding, so are the tools to address them. But a key question remains — are companies doing what's needed to reduce the risk?

By Utility Dive staff

California's 'affordability crisis' attracts innovative ratemaking and regulatory proposals

Double-digit year-on-year spikes in electricity rates are leading California regulators and stakeholders to search for ways to protect climate goals and rate affordability.

By Herman K. Trabish • May 19, 2022

Calls for increased natural gas production ignore US infrastructure needs

While the President has recently shifted his narrative to support American natural gas, his administration continues to introduce and implement policies that impact our industry through added delays and costs, the author writes.

By Amy Andryszak • May 16, 2022

As California confronts the future of its natural gas system, who could get left behind?

Without a proper transition strategy, experts worry that potential declines in natural gas demand will lead to large increases in energy bills likely to fall on the state's most vulnerable customers.

By Kavya Balaraman • May 16, 2022

Congress, stakeholders find consensus around hydropower license reform

Despite some disagreement on how to handle environmental aspects of hydropower license review, a broad group of lawmakers and stakeholders has found common ground on a package of proposed reforms.

By Emma Penrod • May 13, 2022

PJM releases road map for creating 'grid of the future' to handle coming renewables, storage wave

The grid operator said it intends to use scenario-based planning and conduct reliability studies to handle the changing resource mix.

By Ethan Howland • May 12, 2022

White House vows to speed up environmental review for federal projects

The new action plan will help streamline permitting and accelerate projects, Biden administration officials said Wednesday.

By Julie Strupp • May 12, 2022

The public power option should be a community decision

Whether municipalization efforts are driven by a desire for lower rates, better reliability, or environmental goals, this option should be explored as deeply as the community wants to go, the author writes.

By Joy Ditto • May 12, 2022

Even studying public power makes little sense

Switching to public power, or even studying it, would miserably fail a cost-benefit test and would be the wrong solution to whatever problem advocates of public power claim to solve, the author writes.

By Kenneth W. Costello • May 12, 2022

'Made in America' – An analog policy that needs to go digital

To get smart grid projects off the drawing board, we need to include software as part of domestic content calculations — especially firmware for high-priority, planet-friendly projects like advanced metering infrastructure, the author writes.

By Tom Deitrich • May 11, 2022

FERC, state regulators eye options for clearing up interconnection 'quagmire,' allocating upgrade costs

Federal and state officials generally agreed studying interconnection requests in clusters could speed the process, but there was no consensus on who should pay for upgrades.

By Ethan Howland • May 9, 2022

Investigation into solar tariffs could threaten the 2035 US clean energy goal, says DOE's Granholm

Rising energy prices were also a topic of discussion during a Senate committee hearing on the Biden administration's budget request for the agency.

By Robert Walton • May 6, 2022

NiSource cites Commerce Department solar investigation in plans to delay coal plant retirements

The company's plans to retire its coal units by 2023 could be postponed, according to its quarterly earnings filing on Wednesday, as it foresees up to 18 months of delays in new solar deployments.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • May 5, 2022

Power shutoff study highlights need for transparency into investor-owned utility debts, groups say

An updated study of shutoffs during the pandemic highlights increases in shareholder dividends and executive compensation, but it oversimplifies the issue of accumulated debt, according to the Edison Electric Institute.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • May 4, 2022

The fight for a national clean energy transmission system emerges on three fronts

DOE’s multi-part transmission study, FERC’s refocus on transmission planning, and macrogrid advocacy efforts could produce an interconnected nation ready for net zero electricity by 2035, industry, government and other experts say.

By Herman K. Trabish • May 3, 2022

Scaling hydrogen in North America will require policy support beyond infrastructure funding, panel says

The debate about how to ensure government funds will primarily support "green" hydrogen projects is growing comical as other technologies make advances, one analyst says.

By Emma Penrod • May 2, 2022

Becoming a data-driven utility

What does becoming a data-driven utility mean–and how do you get there?  

By Penny Wand, Partner, Technology, West Monroe • May 2, 2022

Can we solve the massive rate hikes for customers of California's largest utilities?

As we plunge into the third year of a global pandemic, the world is experiencing little relief from ever-increasing prices.

May 2, 2022

Gov. DeSantis vetoes rooftop solar bill, citing desire to not add to 'financial crunch' facing Floridians

Advocates logged over 15,000 phone calls, emails and postcards from residents asking the governor to veto the measure, which would have allowed utilities to increase customer bills.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Updated April 28, 2022

Could NextEra's $55M winning bid for SPP's transmission project be among the last of its kind?

FERC's proposed transmission reforms would effectively kill the limited competition that exists, according to Ari Peskoe, a Harvard Law School professor.

By Ethan Howland • April 27, 2022

Biden restores stronger environmental review for federal projects

The updated National Environmental Policy Act could slow approvals for certain infrastructure projects but help them resist lawsuits later on.

By Julie Strupp • April 27, 2022

Pennsylvania reaches the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative starting line

How long the state will be able to run in this multi-state race to lower power plant carbon emissions may be decided this November.

By Elizabeth McCarthy • April 26, 2022

Let's get Western energy market governance right from the start

The time has come to consider what the West needs for governance in a regional energy market, and the conversation must be inclusive of all stakeholder views, the author writes.

By Nicole Hughes • April 25, 2022

As Congress returns, Google proposes legislative action to help it and others to achieve 24/7 clean energy

The internet giant is advocating for policies that can help new technologies scale rapidly, including long-duration storage, hydrogen, carbon capture and advanced nuclear.

By Robert Walton • April 25, 2022