On May 13, 2024, at a special transmission reform meeting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued Order No. 1920 “Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation” (Final Rule).[1] The Final Rule builds upon Order No. 888, Order No. 890, and Order No. 1000, which developed
FERC issues Final Rule on Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements
At the July 27, 2023, Open Meeting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued long-awaited Order No. 2023, the Final Rule on Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements in Docket No. RM22-14-000. The rulemaking arose from the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost
D.C. Circuit Affirms FERC’s Broadview Order Confirming that Qualifying Facilities May Install Greater than 80 MW of Nameplate Generating Capacity
7/8/2024 Update: The U.S. Supreme Court has vacated the D.C. Circuit’s order, discussed below. The D.C. Circuit applied Chevron deference in affirming FERC’s decision in the proceeding below. As a result, the U.S. Supreme Court has vacated and remanded back to the D.C. Circuit to reconsider the case in light of Chevron being overturned.
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FERC Proposes Broad Reforms to Interconnection Process
At its June 16, 2022, open meeting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR), Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements, 179 FERC ¶ 61,194 (2022), proposing reforms to the Commission’s standard generator interconnection procedures and agreements. The goal of the NOPR is to reduce queue
Updated FERC Guidance on Qualifying Facility Certifications
FERC issued two notable orders this spring in Irradiant Partners, LP (Docket No. EL22-8-000) and Dalreed Solar (Docket No. QF20-1037-002) that provide further guidance on qualifying facility (QF) certifications. Here are the key takeaways:
- QF Re-Certifications Should Be Filed Before or At the Time of a Material Change: FERC’s regulations do not contain specific
Solar Power Had a Big Day at FERC
Today was a big day for the solar power industry at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
In its monthly open meeting, FERC announced two decisions that significantly impact the industry — one involving PURPA and the other related to PJM’s Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR).
First, FERC reversed its Broadview Solar decision issued in
FERC Issues Final Rule Overhauling PURPA Regulations
Yesterday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued Order No. 872 and implemented the largest overhaul to FERC’s regulations affecting Qualifying Facilities (QFs) in more than a decade. The order itself is 491 pages in length and there remain plenty of details to unpack in its implementation (including future proceedings to come at the FERC
D.C. Circuit Affirms FERC Order No. 841, Ensuring Storage Access to Wholesale Markets
On Friday, July 10, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) upheld the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (“FERC”) Order Nos. 841 and 841A, which established a framework for electric storage resources’ (“ESRs”) participation in wholesale markets. The D.C. Circuit rejected the petitioners’ arguments that FERC exceeded its jurisdictional boundaries and
FERC Takes Additional Actions to Address Coronavirus Pandemic
On April 2, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or the “Commission”) took several additional actions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These actions supplemented FERC’s previous actions on March 19. In addition to the actions identified below, Chairman Chatterjee highlighted two additional procedural options for obtaining more formal enforcement or compliance-related guidance: standards of conduct waivers and no-action letters. Two FERC staff task forces were created to expeditiously process standards of conduct waiver requests and no-action letters, and contact information is available for the appropriate staff on FERC’s website: here, here, and here.
Continue Reading FERC Takes Additional Actions to Address Coronavirus Pandemic
FERC Updates Operations During the Coronavirus Pandemic
On March 19, 2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the Commission) announced several updates to their operations in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. Chairman Chatterjee held a press conference and stated that FERC is fully functioning via the telework process and expects to continue to be able to complete its work considering matters