Transmission & Distribution

Empire Wind pushes opening of New York's first offshore wind farm to 2026

The developer told federal regulators it needs until December 2026 to build New York's first major offshore wind farm.

By Scott Van Voorhis • Oct. 15, 2021

Amazon, DOE, PJM urge FERC to support proactive transmission planning for an evolving grid

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is preparing for its first overhaul of transmission planning and cost allocation rules in a decade. 

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 15, 2021

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Trendline

Grid Resiliency

Utilities and grid operators are facing increasing threats from climate change as well as cyber and physical attacks, and are deploying a variety of responses, with some adjustments in the age of COVID-19.

By Utility Dive staff

Opinion

Entergy failures threaten New Orleans' future

Entergy's way of doing business is unaffordable to ratepayers and it is unable to provide the kind of reliability and resilience that are more necessary in the face of climate disaster, the author writes.

By Jesse George • Oct. 15, 2021

Southern, Duke SEEM proposal takes effect as FERC deadlocks on market plan

Federal regulators split on whether the Southeast Energy Exchange Market proposal is legal, clearing the way for the trading platform to begin operating in 12 states next year.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 14, 2021

PJM reviews offshore wind transmission offers from PSEG, Anbaric, LS Power, others

Companies propose projects to deliver 7,500 MW of offshore wind to New Jersey in a unique grid operator-state partnership that could crack the "chicken and egg" development hurdle.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 12, 2021

House lawmakers demand answers from LUMA Energy regarding Puerto Rico's failing electric grid

Legislators wrote to the company's CEO seeking details on staffing levels and efforts to bolster the workforce throughout a stretch of power outages that have occurred since the company took over grid operations.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 12, 2021

Opinion

Electric co-ops must heed the lessons of Kodak and others in pushing to overhaul today's G&Ts

It must have been painful to throw away the still-working Walkman, film camera or eight-track tape player (and the car it came in), but the world moved on, United Power's CEO writes.

By Mark A. Gabriel • Oct. 12, 2021

Extending Dominion's Millstone nuclear plant a 'critical' part of path to zero carbon, Connecticut finds

Connecticut's new Integrated Resources Plan finds the state's decarbonization goals are achievable.  But it will require the expanded use of energy storage and demand management and continued reliance on nuclear energy.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 11, 2021

Puerto Rico's grid is 'arguably the worst in the US,' LUMA CEO tells skeptical House committee

Four years after Hurricane Maria destroyed Puerto Rico's electric grid, the island is struggling to modernize its power system. Critics attribute a recent spate of outages to "Hurricane LUMA," a dig at the island's new utility.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 07, 2021

Southern, Duke, PJM, others call for more transmission, coordination to handle renewables surge

As FERC and Congress consider potential measures to increase transmission, 19 grid operators and planners urged changes to the planning, cost allocation and facility siting processes.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 07, 2021

The pace of Biden's clean energy standard is a 'tall order' for utilities, says Sen. King

Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, questioned whether utilities can add renewable power sources quickly enough to meet the proposed clean energy standard.

By Scott Van Voorhis • Oct. 07, 2021

'Maybe it's not the right approach anymore' — FERC Chair Glick mulls new security paradigm for power sector

The electric industry is considering a new approach to securing "low-impact" grid assets, which have typically had fewer protections in place but are increasingly seen as vulnerable to cyberattacks.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 04, 2021

Sponsored by HSI

Meet the utility labor shortage challenge through a true training culture

Understanding and meaningfully addressing the expectations of employees entering the profession is an all-too-often overlooked strategic priority.

MISO, ISO-NE execs stress need for new power supply planning framework at FERC reliability meeting

Increasing wildfires, heat domes and deep freezes require a new paradigm for resource adequacy planning, experts from grid operators told FERC.

By Ethan Howland • Oct. 01, 2021

16 utilities took $1.2B in COVID relief while continuing power shutoffs: report

A new report is critical of the U.S. utilities that received millions from the government's pandemic recovery stimulus while they were shutting off customer power almost 1 million times.

By Robert Walton • Oct. 01, 2021

Deep Dive

As California's solar net metering battle goes to regulators, a focus on reliability may be the best answer

The reliability value of solar plus storage in ensuring resource adequacy might be the key to solar's future, according to Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies Executive Director V. John White.

By Herman K. Trabish • Oct. 01, 2021

PSEG plans $900M in upgrades to 'last-mile' reliability, EV infrastructure

The work-from-home shift in society and an expected transition to electric transportation has added almost a billion dollars to PSEG's capital spending plan for 2021-2025.

By Scott Van Voorhis • Sept. 28, 2021

Deep Dive

State, federal actions show growing push for a nuclear role in reaching net zero emissions

Former critics of nuclear power agree, financial support may be justified for firm power options to tackle climate change and get over the net zero emissions finish line.

By Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 28, 2021

PPL makes 'small' investment to gain insight into 'innovative' $2.5B SOO Green transmission project

The 350-mile proposed line would connect the MISO and PJM grids, bringing wind power from Iowa to Illinois. PPL has bought in for an undisclosed amount, looking to study new ways of developing transmission.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 27, 2021

Opinion

Landmark infrastructure spending must address climate change crisis to prevent further damage

Local policymakers and project developers must be educated on the global nature of the climate challenge and will increasingly require the right tools to guide project selection and development, the authors write.

By Tim Lieuwen, Adam Cohen and Rich Simmons • Sept. 27, 2021

FERC Chair Glick wants mandatory winterization standards for power plants following Texas grid failure

Chairman Richard Glick said FERC would not permit the weakening of the recent recommendations, which one expert said could lead to $1 million per-day penalties for power plants that fail to prepare for climate change.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 24, 2021

AEP has most to gain among US utilities from transmission reforms, incentives: Morgan Stanley

A handful of utilities stand to benefit from a suite of policies and investments the federal government is considering, according to a Sept. 21 research note.

By Robert Walton • UPDATED: Sept. 24, 2021 at 9:26 a.m.

New Orleans City Council votes to investigate Entergy's Ida-related failures

City leaders have also asked state regulators and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to investigate the company, with a particular focus on transmission failures.

By Robert Walton • UPDATED: Sept. 24, 2021 at 9:27 a.m.

US can meet Paris climate commitments but will need to rely heavily on electric utilities: report

A new analysis outlines approaches for the United States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 52% below 2005 levels by 2030. Meeting that target depends on the power sector contributing more than half the total reductions.

By Robert Walton • Sept. 21, 2021

Deep Dive

Advancing the energy transition requires an honest discussion of costs, outages and land, analysts say

Customers will tolerate the power system transformation's problems and challenges if they understand stakeholders will be "careful about the transition," one analyst said.

By Herman K. Trabish • Sept. 20, 2021