Electricity capacity prices skyrocketed 900% in latest auction
ANNAPOLIS, MD – Today, Maryland State Senator Ron Watson and Maryland Delegates Adrian Boafo, Lorig Charkoudian, David Fraser-Hidalgo, and Natalie Ziegler released a joint statement on the skyrocketing electricity prices announced last week byMaryland’s electric grid operator, PJM. Prices in its annual capacity auction rose over 900 percent, from $28.92 per megawatt-day to $269.92. The price increase was most significant in Maryland, rising to $466.35. Next June, most Maryland ratepayers will likely see electricity bill increases well over 30 percent.
These prices are driven in large part by the grid operator’s years-long issues in getting more generating resources connected to the grid. At the end of 2023, PJM had 3,309 projects – mostly solar and battery storage – waiting to connect to the grid and provide cheaper power to the region. PJM earned a national-worst “D-” in a recent scorecard from Advanced Energy United of all grid operator interconnection processes earlier this year, with developers forced to wait longer in PJM than any other region in the country. These clean energy projects together have enough capacity to replace all the generation currently operating in the PJM system, even after planned fossil fuel plant retirements. Because of this backlog, new renewable projects cannot even apply to bring power to Maryland consumers until 2026.
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Topics:
Advanced Transportation,
Press Releases,
Transmission,
Maryland
Approval marks a significant development for the West, says Advanced Energy United
The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) approved the first step of the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative’s straw proposal. Step 1 of the straw proposal increases the independence of the existing CAISO real-time and day-ahead markets’ governance by providing more autonomy to the existing Western Energy Market Governing Body.
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Topics:
Wholesale Markets,
Press Releases,
Leah Rubin Shen,
Western RTO,
California
CHICAGO, IL – Without rapid investments in clean energy storage, Illinois consumers will pay up to $30 more per month for energy, and the state will face energy shortfalls and a higher risk of blackouts, according to a newly released study.
The study, “Cost and Benefit Analysis of Energy Storage Resource Deployment in Illinois,” found that deploying at least 8,500 MW of clean energy storage would provide $3 billion in consumer cost savings, save $7.3 billion in blackout-related costs through increased grid reliability, and generate up to $16.3 billion in economic activity in Illinois by 2050.
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Press Releases,
Illinois
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Grid Deployment Office of the U.S. Department of Energy announced the second round awardees of the Grid Innovation Program, funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (IIJA).
“With these awards the Energy Department is addressing some of the most acute challenges facing our energy system, including the need to connect more clean energy to the power grid and making the grid more efficient,” said Harry Godfrey, Managing Director of Federal Investment & Manufacturing at national business association Advanced Energy United. “The best way to cost-effectively meet growing energy demand is with advanced energy technologies, including advanced transmission technologies, long-duration storage, microgrids, and more. The continued success of this program, for which DOE received far more applications than there are dollars available, demonstrates the continued, bipartisan appeal of building an affordable, reliable, and clean grid to power America’s homes and businesses into the 21st century.”
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Topics:
Federal Policy,
Press Releases,
Manufacturing and Infrastructure
Consumers paying the price for poor planning and insufficient electric transmission build-out
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the largest U.S. power grid operator, PJM, announced a 9-fold increase in capacity price for electricity across its 13-state footprint, with costs jumping from $28.92 per megawatt-day to $269.92 per megawatt-day.
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Topics:
Wholesale Markets,
Press Releases,
Jon Gordon
New proposal from Barrasso and Manchin a good foundation on which to build
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Senators Barrasso and Manchin released the framework for a package of reforms aimed at changing how we permit and site electric transmission, energy generation, and mining projects for the critical minerals needed to power many advanced energy technologies. National business association Advanced Energy United is calling on Congress to build on the framework provided to pass comprehensive permitting reform that supports America’s transition to an economy built on advanced energy.
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Topics:
Federal Policy,
Press Releases,
Manufacturing and Infrastructure,
Harrison Godfrey
Advanced Energy Industry Group Calls on Texas Utilities to Up Their Commitment to Distributed Energy Resources
AUSTIN, TX – Amidst ongoing power outages and calls for investigations in the wake of Hurricane Beryl, the Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA) is advocating for Texas leaders to reevaluate the state’s approach to grid resilience.
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Topics:
State Policy,
Press Releases,
Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance,
Texas
$10 billion for water, clean energy, and environmental protection has passed the full legislature
SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, California lawmakers passed a groundbreaking $10 billion climate bond, the largest climate investment in state history. This novel initiative aims to advance clean energy, clean drinking water, and environmental protection programs that will bolster community resiliency and response time from climate-related disasters.
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Topics:
Press Releases,
California,
Edson Perez
State leaders show progress in moving forward distributed clean energy and building electrification legislation
SACRAMENTO, CA – Today,the California Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee voted to pass Senate Bills 1221 and 1374.
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Topics:
Press Releases,
California,
Edson Perez
