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I’m pleased to announce that the Solar Electric Power Association has selected a paper authored by James Tong of Clean Power Finance, Jenny Hu and myself as one of three concepts that will focus discussion at SEPA’s 51st State Summit on Monday, April 27 in San Diego. Titled “The 51st State: Market Structures for a Smarter, More Efficient Grid,” the paper was selected from a dozen submitted by individuals and organizations from across the country.

You can view our paper concept at this SEPA link (PDF). A screenshot of the abstract of our paper is available at the end of this post.

As Gavin Bade of Utility Dive described in a review of our paper concept last week, James, Jenny and myself are calling for an Independent Distribution System Operator (IDSO) model under which the grid  would operate like a network “not unlike the Internet, stock market, or our capitalistic economy,” with millions of actors each day making value-based energy decisions on a “plug-and-play” grid with multi-directional electricity flows.
Continue Reading SEPA Selects “Grid Market Structures” Paper Concept as a Focus of 51st State Summit

Yesterday, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (the “Commission”) met to address the first general rate case filed under section 216B.16 subd. 19 of the Minnesota Statutes. Northern States Power Company, a Minnesota Corporation, d/b/a Xcel Energy submitted the multiyear rate petition on November 4, 2013. In that petition, Xcel Energy asked for an increase in…

After the years of inconclusive resource planning, months of contested case proceedings, and days of oral argument, discussion and review that led to today’s deliberations, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (“Commission”) unanimously decided not to decide. The ultimate question before the Commission was what capacity needs had been determined in the record and what should…

Last week, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission resolved a longstanding dispute over who owns Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) when the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) is silent.  Following the establishment of an REC tracking system for Minnesota, Xcel Energy asked the Commission to clarify ownership of RECs associated with 46 wind, biomass, hydro, and landfill gas…

On July 28, 2010, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (the "Commission") issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking ("NOPR") regarding rules related to electric transmission facilities planning (the "Proposed Rules").  The Proposed Rules are based, in large part, on the input provided by all interested parties in the workshops and written comments in connection with Docket Nos. 08I-227E and 09M-616E and in response to certain legislative and policy changes impacting transmission planning significantly.  In response to these legislative and policy changes, some of the key issues that need to be addressed in transmission planning include transmission-related challenges to satisfying State of Colorado’s renewable energy portfolio standard for electricity generation, distributed generation set-asides, and requirements that the Commission give the fullest possible consideration to cost-effective implementation of new clean energy and energy efficient technologies.  In implementing the Proposed Rules, the Commission recognizes that "both state-wide coordinated transmission planning and a meaningful involvement in such planning by stakeholders and the Commission are essential."  NOPR at 2-3.  In addition, the Commission concluded that "an effective transmission planning approach needs to be long-term and pro-active rather than just-in-time and reactive."

Under the Proposed Rules, the Commission will rely on the Colorado Coordinated Planning Group ("CCPG") as the primary means by which jurisdictional electric utilities will develop the ten-year transmission plans and the twenty-year conceptual plans contemplated under the rules, in consultation with other CCPG members and stakeholders.  Overall, the Proposed Rules set forth the general objectives associated with the biennial filing of the following:  Continue Reading Colorado Public Utilities Commission Proposes New Rules Governing Transmission Planning