Regulation & Policy: Page 2

FERC proposes expanded state role in effort to spur transmission development

"The proposal aims to facilitate states' influence and buy-in to regional planning and cost allocation," FERC Commissioner Allison Clements said.

By Ethan Howland • April 22, 2022

Lawmakers, some renewable advocates urge FERC to reject ISO-NE plan to delay MOPR elimination

Delaying the end of New England's minimum offer price rule will hurt offshore wind efforts, advocates say.

By Ethan Howland • April 22, 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

Arizona legislature advances bill restricting retail competition in effort to promote reliability

Clean energy advocates opposed the bill for restricting customer choice, lacking reliability initiatives and further challenging the legal precedent for distributed solar within a public utility's territory.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • April 21, 2022

Maryland takes the lead on near-term state carbon reduction targets

The state's 2031 greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal is larger than that of any other state, at a 60% cut over less than a decade.

By Elizabeth McCarthy • April 21, 2022

Global decarbonization is a more than $50 trillion opportunity for private capital: Blackstone

Public budgets, tax policy and private capital will all be necessary for the world to muster a $100 trillion clean energy investment, the climate counselor to the U.S. Department of the Treasury said Wednesday.

By Robert Walton • April 21, 2022

FERC must stand strong against industry pressure to weaken climate and environmental justice policies

Federal regulators must quickly finalize the strongest possible policies to ensure a clear process that accounts for the true costs of fossil fuel projects, according to Earthjustice.

By Moneen Nasmith • April 20, 2022

California unveils proposed pathway to reach 100% ZEVs by 2035

The proposal recommends an annual zero-emissions vehicles requirement that begins at 35% in 2026 before ramping up to 68% in 2030.

By Kavya Balaraman • April 13, 2022

NorthWestern Energy sues to overturn FERC PURPA ruling in dispute over solar-battery project

The spike in natural gas prices could spark a PURPA revival in the Northwest, according to a PURPA attorney.

By Ethan Howland • April 13, 2022

Virginia SCC staff questions Dominion Energy's offshore wind cost assumptions

The regulatory commission's staff testimony addresses whether the cost estimates were based on accurate assumptions by Dominion, the first utility to build large-scale offshore wind in the United States.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • April 12, 2022

Nuclear energy should not be part of the global solution to climate change

Neither existing nor proposed reactors have a business case, so they have no climate case either. In energy as in financial portfolios, backing losers — diversifying into poor investments — only hurts performance, the author writes.

By Amory B. Lovins • April 12, 2022

Reliability concerns drive need for energy market design reforms, but regions diverge in FERC proceeding

Filings from FERC proceedings show a one-size-fits-all reform can't sufficiently address regional market diversity, but federal guidelines can target growing uncertainties and costs from rising variable and distributed resource penetrations.

By Herman K. Trabish • April 11, 2022

Clean energy sector eyes window for passing federal tax breaks amid challenge of high energy prices

Now that the Senate has confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, clean energy groups are hoping to see movement in Congress on long-term tax incentives, but multiple obstacles remain.

By Larry Pearl • April 8, 2022

Senators press for quicker solar anti-dumping investigation amid reports of sector's 'rapid degeneration'

U.S. solar developers reported 318 projects totaling 51 GW of solar capacity and 6 GWh of attached battery storage are being canceled or delayed in the wake of the Department of Commerce investigation.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • Updated May 3, 2022

High risk, small reward: Regulators should tread carefully when reviewing utility hydrogen proposals

Hydrogen blending with natural gas would likely raise consumer costs, increase dangerous pollution, and risk public safety, all while minimally reducing emissions, the author writes.

By Hadley Tallackson • April 5, 2022

Duke Energy proposes 1.3 GW solar solicitation in the Carolinas

The third-party solicitations are a way for the state to expand solar competition within the region, according to experts.

By Iulia Gheorghiu • April 4, 2022

ISO-NE proposes ending MOPR in 2025, with a transition aimed at protecting grid reliability

The plan responds to complaints ISO New England's capacity market rules blocked states from meeting their energy goals.

By Ethan Howland • April 4, 2022

FERC's Office of Public Participation eyes options for intervenor funding

Developing a funding proposal to help underrepresented people and groups engage at FERC is a "priority," OPP Director Elin Katz said Thursday.

By Ethan Howland • April 4, 2022

Constellation NewEnergy agrees to pay $4.7M to settle allegations it violated CAISO's market rules

FERC said the retail energy provider failed to provide power twice when called upon by the California grid operator in 2017.

By Ethan Howland • March 30, 2022

Aligning climate and affordability goals can save states billions

Investing in emissions reductions for communities facing the greatest challenges paying their energy bills can save taxpayers and ratepayers money, the authors write.

By Arjun Makhijani and Boris Lukanov • March 30, 2022

Biden's proposed budget includes nearly $45B for climate and clean energy, a 7% increase for DOE

The proposal, released Monday, calls for spending $502 million to weatherize and retrofit low-income homes, including $100 million for a pilot program to electrify low-income homes.

By Ethan Howland • March 29, 2022

California issued wildfire safety certifications to utilities despite 'serious deficiencies': audit

The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety approved utility plans despite the utilities' failure to demonstrate that they were "appropriately prioritizing" the work, acting California State Auditor Michael Tilden said in a letter. 

By Kavya Balaraman • March 28, 2022

How technology and improved processes reduce utility O&M costs

Utilities will always have O&M challenges. Whether it's diagnosing safety or operations issues or detecting and updating technology and equipment, the good news is organizations have viable options to save time and labor to overcome those challenges.

March 28, 2022

Need for more clarity prompts FERC to put new natural gas pipeline, LNG review policies on hold, Glick says

The dispute over FERC's gas policies was distracting the agency from work on key issues like cybersecurity, energy markets and transmission planning, Chairman Richard Glick said.

By Ethan Howland • March 25, 2022

'I think we have a wake-up call right now' — FERC's Phillips touts transmission's reliability benefits

In his first public speaking engagement since joining FERC, Commissioner Willie Phillips also called for changes in how grid interconnection queues are managed.

By Larry Pearl • March 25, 2022

House committee investigates shut-off rates for Dominion, DTE, Duke, Exelon, NextEra and Southern

The investigation launched this week comes amid concerns about rising energy prices and consumer debt.

By Ethan Howland • March 24, 2022