News

Virginia Mercury reported on Virginia's energy mix and natural gas development given Gov. Ralph Northam's recent call for a carbon-free grid, including quotes by Virginia AEE's Harry Godfrey. Read excerpts below and the entire Virginia Mercury piece here. 

This September, Gov. Ralph Northam took the stage at the inaugural Virginia Clean Energy Summit to announce he was committing the state to a carbon-free grid by 2050. “I always say that I want Virginia to be a welcoming place, with our lights on and our doors open,” he said. “Well, I also want those lights to be powered by clean energy.” But as the governor received a standing ovation, elsewhere in the commonwealth work was underway to massively expand infrastructure supporting a very different — and decidedly not carbon-free — type of energy: natural gas. 

S&P Global published a piece on possible challenges for Eastern capacity markets, quoting AEE's Ryan Katofsky. Read excerpts below and the entire S&P Global piece here. 

Renewable energy developers on the East Coast face an uphill battle in 2020 to secure capacity payments as new wholesale power market rules have the potential to force them out of the market. Possibly more daunting than the hurdle this presents for the transition to a clean energy economy is the potential for market rule changes approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to be the beginning of the end for mandatory capacity markets in the Eastern regional transmission organizations...

Greentech Media published an abridged version of AEE's Coley Girouard's annual Top 10 Utility Regulation Trends of 2019 blog post. Read excerpts below and the entire GTM piece here.

From the realignment of utilities’ performance incentives to the ongoing rise of DERs, regulators had their work cut out for them this year. In August, we published the top 10 utility regulation trends of 2019 — so far. With 2019 wrapping up, we look at the 10 trends and actions that stand out above the rest. From the falling cost of renewables and storage driving utilities' resource planning, to the realignment of utility performance incentives with evolving policy goals, it was a busy year. Below is an executive summary of the complete roundup, which has specific examples of state public utility commission action. (You can read AEE's full version with details and links to proceedings here.)

E&E News covered FERCs recent demand to PJM requiring them to restrict state-backed renewables within its capacity market and included quotes by AEE's Jeff Dennis. Read excerpts below and the entire E&E News piece here (sub. req.)

Federal regulators approved rules yesterday for the nation's largest electricity market that effectively prop up fossil fuel power plants and discourage new investments in renewable power, demand response and energy storage projects. The much-awaited changes in PJM Interconnection's rules governing its capacity market were issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 508 days after the agency issued a decision calling the current market rules unjust and unreasonable and directing PJM to devise a fix.

Utility Dive covered Gov. Ralph Northam's 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050 bill followed by Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announcement for a 100% clean energy by 2040 state plan and included quotes by AEE's JR Tolbert. Read excerpts below and the entire UD piece here. 

States where legislatures are aligned with the governor on climate issues are advancing clean energy policies, garnering industry support from the clean energy sector.

"We are continuing to work with the industry to make sure that the structure of the renewable energy portfolio pieces of the program are the most effective means by which we can finance projects," J.R. Tolbert, managing director of Advanced Energy Economy (AEE), told Utility Dive. 

Utility Dive covered FERC's new rule on capacity market pricing for the PJM region, quoting AEE's Jeff Dennis. Read excerpts below and the entire UD piece here. 

Federal regulators on Thursday voted to effectively raise the bids of subsidized resources selling their power into PJM Interconnection's wholesale capacity market. Under the plan, new resources receiving subsidies will now be subject to the Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR), which raises the price floor for those resources attempting to sell their power into the wholesale market. The move is intended to prevent potential "unacceptable market distorting effects" caused by state clean energy policies, according to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Neil Chatterjee. Commissioner Richard Glick was the sole dissenting vote of the three commissioners.

National business group sees FERC order as misapplication of rule, which would price renewable energy facilities out of capacity market, undermining state policies and market competition

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 19, 2019 – National business group Advanced Energy Economy reacted to an order issued today by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) requiring grid operator PJM Interconnection to extend a rule that sets an artificial floor price on offers into PJM’s capacity market to all new renewable generating facilities and other new advanced energy technologies (including energy storage) that receive any form of state support, along with (in some cases) new and existing nuclear power facilities.

Augusta Free Press covered the introduction of legislation to provide Virginia with a 100 percent carbon-free electricity grid by 2050 and included quotes by Virginia AEE's Harry Godfrey and AEE Member Apex Clean Energy. Read excerpts below and the entire Augusta Free Press piece here. 

Legislation to give Virginia a 100 percent carbon-free electricity grid by 2050 will be introduced in the Virginia General Assembly in January. Sen. Jennifer McClellan, Del. Rip Sullivan, Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy and Del. Alfonso Lopez joined representatives from a broad coalition of advocacy groups Thursday to announce the introduction of the Virginia Clean Economy Act. The bill would also set the goal to eliminate carbon pollution by Virginia’s utilities by 2050...

Bill Will Bring Virginia to 100% Carbon Free Electricity by 2050

RICHMOND, December 19, 2019 — Today, Senator Jennifer McClellan, Del. Rip Sullivan, Del. Jennifer Carroll Foy, and Del. Alfonso Lopez joined representatives from a broad coalition of advocacy groups to announce the introduction of the Virginia Clean Economy Act. The bill will give Virginia a 100% carbon-free electricity grid and eliminate carbon pollution by Virginia’s utilities by 2050. The act will lower monthly utility bills, create tens of thousands of new clean energy jobs, and give us cleaner air, while tackling climate change and making our energy economy more just and equitable for all Virginians.

Greentech Media covered FERC's new rule on capacity market pricing for the PJM region, quoting AEE's Jeff Dennis. Read excerpts below and the entire GTM piece here. 

After more than a year of delay, the two-Republican majority at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has told mid-Atlantic grid operator PJM how it must revamp its $10-billion-per-year capacity market. And at first glance, it could be even more harmful to state-subsidized renewable energy than previously imagined. Thursday’s order would force almost all future state-subsidized resources in PJM's 11-state territory to use a “minimum offer price rule,” or MOPR, that would limit how low they can bid.

POLITICO Pro covered PJM's imminent decision to set a price floor in PJM Interconnection's 13-state capacity market, including AEE's Jeff Dennis perspective. Read excerpts below and the entire POLITICO Pro piece here. (sub. req.)

FERC is set to decide Thursday on a measure to counter states' clean energy and nuclear power subsidies — a ruling that could ultimately lead to the destruction of part of the nation's largest power market. FERC's three commissioners will vote on whether to set a price floor in PJM Interconnection's 13-state capacity market, which is used to ensure enough power is available to meet future demand by paying electricity producers to make their plants available in three years. Those capacity payments are designed to give the power producers long-term price signals that enable them to plan investments in new generating facilities.

Smart Energy Decisions published AEE's Caitlin Marquis' look back at key advanced energy trends for large corporate procurement this past record-breaking year and a look ahead at what 2020 might hold. Read excerpts below and the entire Smart Energy Decisions piece here. 

Corporate renewable energy procurement is no longer a new trend. Commercial and industrial (C&I) customers have become an important slice of the overall market driving renewable energy development.  While increasingly mature, the C&I market for renewable energy is far from static. In this column, Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) provides a look back at key trends from the past year and a look ahead at what 2020 might hold.

Analysis shows significant demand from commercial and industrial customers for renewable energy could result in investment of up to $1 billion per year and create nearly 60,000 jobs through 2030 from solar energy development in Florida 

TALLAHASSEE, December 12, 2019 – Today national business association Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) released a new report showing that Florida could benefit from $1 billion dollars in investment and tens of thousands of jobs if commercial and industrial (C&I) businesses had more options to procure renewable energy through their electric utilities. 

CalMatters published a commentary by AEE CEO Nat Kreamer and Mark Ferron (former on CAISO board member and CPUC commissioner) on the opportunity Gov. Newsom has to address California's wildfire challenges with the state's leading advanced energy expertise. Read excerpts below and the entire CalMatters piece here. 

The wildfires and blackouts that have blighted our state are causing many Californians to question utility motivations, the effectiveness of regulators to protect citizens’ interests, and, ironically, the clean energy and grid investments that mitigate wildfire risk and improve electricity system reliability. To break the cycle of wildfires, blackouts, and electricity rate hikes, we need determined leadership by Gov. Gavin Newsom and help from an industry that California uniquely has at its disposal. 

Utility Dive covered state AG's and competitive market groups who criticized a recent federal proposal to overhaul PURPA, including quotes by AEE's Jeff Dennis. Read excerpts below and the entire UD piece here. 

States, competitive market groups and other stakeholders criticized a federal proposal to overhaul the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA), in comments filed Tuesday, questioning the potential impacts those changes could have to the country's renewable energy momentum. Stakeholders, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) raised concerns that the notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in September would unduly impact states outside regulated power pools. Meanwhile, states participating in regional transmission organizations (RTOs) and independent system operators (ISOs) had their own concerns about the potential impacts of the proposed rule.

More Workers in Nevada Advanced Energy than in Real Estate,
More than Double in Mining, with 7% Growth Expected in 2019

The Silver State now boasts nearly 34,000 advanced energy jobs, up 31% last year, 10 times overall job growth in the state

CARSON CITY, December 5, 2019 — Today, national business group Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) released a fact sheet reporting that Nevada has 33,900 people working in advanced energy across the state. This represents more workers than those in Real Estate (27,591), and more than double those working in Mining (12,906) across the Silver State.

National business group raises concerns about competitive market access for smaller electric power generation resources in FERC proposal

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 3, 2019 – Today, national business group Advanced Energy Economy filed comments in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC's) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) issued Sept. 19 (Docket Nos. RM19-15 and AD16-16) that proposes revisions to regulations implementing the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA).