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“Today’s decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s authority to set rules for demand response in energy markets is to be applauded,” said Malcolm Woolf, Senior Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs for Advanced Energy Economy (AEE), a national business organization. “Demand response is a vital service that allows grid operators to relieve stress on the U.S. electric power system at times of peak demand. Under FERC’s rules, demand response has matured into a major industry that helps keep the lights on during critical events such as the polar vortex and saves consumers billions of dollars annually. We hope and expect that the high court will reverse the Appeals Court ruling and restore FERC’s authority over this important tool for reducing energy bills and enhancing grid reliability for American businesses and consumers alike.”  

The North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) released a study on Tuesday that concludes that utilities need more time to develop new generation and transmission than the EPA outlines in its proposed Clean Power Plan. Utility Dive quotes Malcolm Woolf, Senior Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs, in its coverage of the story:

In November 2014, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) issued an “initial reliability review” in which it identified elements of the CPP that could lead to reliability concerns. Echoed by some grid operators and cited in comments to EPA submitted by states, utilities, and industry groups, the NERC study has made reliability a critical issue in finalizing, and then implementing, the Clean Power Plan.    In order to gain insight on the issue, the Advanced Energy Economy Institute commissioned The Brattle Group, a leading consulting firm to utilities and grid operators, to conduct a critical review of the NERC study. US News & World Report quotes this review in a report of EPA Commissioner Gina Mccarthy’s remarks about the Clean Power Plan:

Mix of new temporary construction and permanent jobs would peak at 5,700 under basic scenario, but reach 12,600 jobs if investments also aim to keep utility spending in the state – a number nearly equal to employment in Virginia’s commercial construction sector. 

This piece was originally published in Energy Biz Magazine's Spring 2015 edition. It is available here on Energy Biz Magazine's Website. 

Several news outlets, including Greentech Media, E&E News, and PV Magazine covered the release of AEE's latest report, Advanced Energy Now 2015 Market Report. Check out the full coverage from those sources here. Additional coverage included:

The National Law Review reported on AEE's 2015 Market Report in two separate features. The first, written by Sahir Surmeli, focuses on the relative size of the advanced energy economy:

Fierce Energy reported on AEE's new report, Advanced Energy Now 2015 Market Report. Barbara Lundin writes: 

By Umair Irfan

Julia Pyper, writing for Greentech Media, features AEE's new 2015 Market Report in a story. "The advanced energy sector has made it to the big leagues," she begins.