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Anything But This: ISOs and RTOs Dissatisfied with FERC Inaction

 June 21, 2017

In May 2017, FERC held a technical conference on wholesale energy and capacity market design that focused on Regional Transmission Operators (RTOs) and Independent System Operators (ISOs) in the Eastern Interconnect, including ISO New England (ISO-NE), New York ISO (NYISO), and PJM Interconnection (PJM). The goal of the conference was to examine emerging issues between state policies and wholesale power markets, but little consensus emerged, as participants focused on the issues and remedies that hit closest to home.


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Volkswagen Settlement May Create EV Opportunity for Electric Utilities

 June 9, 2017

In October 2016, Volkswagen (VW) agreed to pay $14.7 billion as part of a settlement related to diesel vehicles violating Clean Air Act regulations. For electric utilities, settlement investments may improve the availability and adoption of electric transportation, which may ultimately result in electric load growth.


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Adoption of Drones in the Electric Utility Industry

 June 8, 2017

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) recently published “An Early Survey of Best Practices for the Use of Small Unmanned Aerial Systems by the Electric Utility Industry.” Known as sUAS, and interchangeable with the terms drones and Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS), sUAS have the potential to conduct efficient and safe electric infrastructure inspections, effectively detect problems with electric equipment, access equipment in difficult terrain, and provide direct support for electric utility vegetation management. ORNL’s survey of best practices is focused on safety and mitigating risk. It serves to inform electric utilities’ strategy and operations in the areas of mission planning and execution, contracting for sUAS services, and development of in-house capability.


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Tough Environment for Nuclear: Two Exelon Plants Fail to Clear PJM Auction

 June 7, 2017

PJM recently closed its 2020-2021 delivery year capacity auction. The auction was the first for grid resources under PJM’s new capacity-performance regime. Two Exelon nuclear facilities, Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania and Quad Cities in Illinois, failed to clear the auction. Exelon has cited two primary reasons for failing to clear the auction. The first being the lack of federal or Pennsylvania energy policies that value zero-emission nuclear energy, and the second being the fact that Illinois has not yet decided whether to include Quad Cities in their zero-emission credit program under the newly signed state Future Energy Jobs Act.


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Community Choice Aggregation Grows Faster than Expected in California

 May 30, 2017

California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) staff have estimated that “more than 80% of California’s investor-owned utility (IOU) customers will get their electricity from alternative sources by 2025, and at least 30% will have done so by the end of this year.” Among alternative electricity supply options, Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs) are proving exceptionally popular, with growth outpacing expectations. Local governments and municipalities in California are increasingly using CCAs to achieve more control over electricity supplies, driven by the desires of many citizens for cleaner, cheaper sources of electricity and CCAs’ focus on renewable energy supply options.


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Department of Energy Orders Study Examining the Impact of Clean Energy Policies on Baseload Power Resources

 May 18, 2017

Last month, Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Rick Perry directed his department to conduct a 60-day study to “explore critical issues central to protecting the long-term reliability of the electric grid.” Specifically, the study is aimed at the impact on the grid from the recent wave of closures/retirements of baseload resources (over the past five years, 44.3 GWs of coal and 4.6 GWs of nuclear baseload generation capacity has been retired). The memo cites unnamed “grid experts” that are concerned “about the erosion of critical baseload resources,” “the manner in which baseload power is dispatched and compensated,” and “the diminishing diversity of our nation’s electric generation mix, and what it could mean for baseload power and grid resilience.”


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Maryland Adopts 30% Tax Credit for Energy Storage Projects

 May 15, 2017

Maryland will offer tax credits for residential and commercial energy storage projects beginning in 2018. Although Maryland is not the first state to provide incentives for energy storage, the use of tax credits marks a departure from recent energy storage mandates.


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Employee Engagement: Utilizing Performance Reviews to Improve Employee-Manager Relationships

 May 15, 2017

Employee engagement has emerged as a key performance indicator. Studies show that highly engaged employees increase customer satisfaction, productivity, and profitability, while decreasing turnover, absenteeism, and safety incidents.


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Enbridge and Spectra Energy Mega-Merger Impacts

 May 5, 2017

On February 27, 2017, Enbridge (headquartered in Calgary, Alberta), acquired Houston-based Spectra Energy—creating the largest energy infrastructure company in North America. The stock-for-stock deal is worth US$28.7 billion. Enbridge’s major business segments are liquid pipelines, gas distribution, gas pipelines and processing, energy services, and renewable power and transmission. The acquisition adds Spectra Energy’s gas distribution, Western Canada transmission and processing, field services, and Spectra Energy Partners businesses. The combined entity has an enterprise value of US$127 billion.


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Con Edison Program Rewards EVs for Off-Peak Charging and Data Sharing

 May 1, 2017

Consolidated Edison (Con Edison), in conjunction with FleetCarma, recently introduced the “SmartCharge New York” program. The program rewards electric vehicle (EV) owners for charging during off-peak hours and providing critical data on electric-delivery system impacts.


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Large Corporations Continue to Establish Aggressive Renewable Energy Targets and Drive Demand

 April 19, 2017

The demand for renewable energy has increased, especially among Fortune 100 companies such as Google, Facebook, and Amazon. This increased demand, and the energy goals of firms like these, have led utilities to tailor their offerings via specialized rates and renewable tariff programs. Large corporations are also examining utility alternatives, e.g., third-party providers.


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President Trump Signs Wide-Reaching Executive Order Directing Agencies to Review Existing Energy Regulations

 April 6, 2017

Late last month, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) directing all executive departments and agencies to “immediately review existing regulations that potentially burden the development or use of domestically produced energy resources and appropriately suspend, revise, or rescind those that unduly burden the development of domestic energy resources beyond the degree necessary to protect the public interest or otherwise comply with the law.” The EO goes on to further define “domestic energy resources” as oil, natural gas, coal, and nuclear energy resources.


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