Tag Archives: ISO-NE

CPES Policy Committee Update: March 12, 2019

This update features policy, regulatory, legislative, and regional developments in Connecticut and New England. The policy updates are compiled by the CPES New Energy Professionals Team. If you are interested in learning more about the New Energy Professionals, the Policy Committee, or if you have ideas for future policy updates, we would welcome your input and feedback. Please send comments to Kathryn Dube, CPES Executive Director, via email: kdube@ctpower.org.

In this Update:

  • Energy & Technology Committee Meeting: March 12
  • Dominion Pushing for Sweeter Deal to Keep Millstone Open
  • NE Publishes 2019 Regional Electricity Outlook
  • U.S. House Committee on Energy & Commerce Holds Hearing on Energy Efficiency Standards

CONNECTICUT

LEGISLATIVE
ENERGY & TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
The Energy & Technology Committee of the Connecticut General Assembly will hold a Committee Meeting on March 12 at 2:30 PM in Room 1B of the Legislative Office Building.

The Bil Record Book, which contains proposed House and Senate bills, is available here.

DOMINION PUSHING FOR SWEETER DEAL TO KEEP MILLSTONE OPEN
When an industry analyst on a February conference call asked if Millstone Power Station still faced closure, Dominion Energy President and CEO Thomas Farrell replied that executives were “not here to do any saber-rattling.” Article

INDUSTRY

NE PUBLISHES 2019 REGIONAL ELECTRICITY OUTLOOK
ISO’s 2019 Regional Electricity Outlook (REO) is an annual report looking at the trends affecting New England’s power system today and in the future.

U.S. HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY & COMMERCE HOLDS HEARING ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY STANDARDS
The March 7th hearing focused on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) delay of 16 appliance energy efficiency standards and failure to publish Final Energy Conservation Standards.  Related documents are available here.

 

CPES Policy Committee Update: February 19, 2019

This update features policy, regulatory, legislative, and regional developments in Connecticut and New England. The policy updates are compiled by the CPES New Energy Professionals Team. If you are interested in learning more about the New Energy Professionals, the Policy Committee, or if you have ideas for future policy updates, we would welcome your input and feedback. Please send comments to Kathryn Dube, CPES Executive Director, via email: kdube@ctpower.org.

In this Update:

  • Energy & Technology Committee Public Hearings: Feb 19 and Feb 21
  • PURA established Docket No. 19-02-13:  Declaratory Ruling Regarding Licensed Electric Supplier Practices of Altering the Prices in Fixed-Price Contracts
  • Consumers in Retail Competition Markets Saved $300B Over the Past Decade, Trade Group Says
  • Speaker Announced for ISO-NE March CLG Meeting: Jeffrey Grybowski, Co-CEO Ørsted US Offshore Wind
  • ISO-NE Announces Spring 2019 Market Training Classes
  • 2nd Circuit Sides With Direct Energy Services in Rate Hike Dispute
  • Vistra Energy to Expand Retail Business with $328M acquisition
  • Future US Electricity Generation Mix Will Depend Largely on Natural Gas Prices

CONNECTICUT

LEGISLATIVE
ENERGY & TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
The Energy & Technology Committee will hold the following public hearings:
                 -Tuesday, February 19, 10:15 am in room 1E of the LOB Agenda
                 – Thursday, February 21, 10:00 am in Rm 1B of the LOB Agenda  

The Bil Record Book, which contains proposed House and Senate bills, is available here.

REGULATORY
On February 11, 2019, PURA established Docket No. 19-02-13:  Declaratory Ruling Regarding Licensed Electric Supplier Practices of Altering the Prices in Fixed-Price Contracts

REGIONAL/INDUSTRYCONSUMERS IN RETAIL COMPETITION MARKETS SAVED $300B OVER THE PAST DECADE, TRADE GROUP SAYS
Electricity prices in many states with retail choice are high, but RESA’s analysis concludes they are moving lower, as consumers reap the benefits of cheap natural gas and lower electricity demand. But the same cannot be said for states with monopoly utility structures. MORE

SPEAKER ANNOUNCED FOR ISO-NE MARCH CLG MEETING: JEFFREY GRYBOWSKI, CO-CEO ØRSTED US OFSHORE WIND
Jeffrey Grybowski, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Ørsted US Offshore Wind, will give the keynote address at the March 14th meeting of the Consumer Liaison Group (CLG) at the Omni Providence Hotel. Following, a panel will discuss Transforming the Power Sector: Customer Choice in a Changing Energy Landscape. 

ISO-NE ANNOUNCES SPRING 2019 MARKET TRAINING CLASSES
ISO-NE’s Customer Training will hold Introduction to Wholesale Electricity Markets April 29- May 3 and Intermediate Wholesale Electricity Markets June 11-13.  Learn more and register here.

2ND CIRCUIT SIDES WITH DIRECT ENERGY SERVICES IN RATE HIKE DISPUTE
Connecticut resident Gary Richards had sued private electricity supplier Direct Energy Services LLP, claiming it unfairly hiked prices by switching from a fixed to variable rate. A Second Circuit panel, ruling 2-1, upheld a lower court ruling that sided with the electricity supplier. MORE

VISTRA ENERGY TO EXPAND RETAIL BUSINESS WITH $328M ACQUISITION
Vistra Energy Corp. has entered into an agreement to acquire Crius Energy Trust for about $328 million, the company announced in a news release Thursday. The move comes as Irving-based Vistra (NYSE: VST) seeks to expand its retail business. With the acquisition of Crius Energy, Vistra would serve 19 states and the District of Columbia in the electricity and natural gas product market for residential and small business customers. MORE

FUTURE US ELECTRICITY GENERATION MIX WILL DEPEND LARGELY ON NATURAL GAS PRICES
The mix of fuels used to generate electricity in the US has changed in response to differences in the relative costs of electricity-generating technologies and their fuels. EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook 2019 shows that projected generation and capacity is significantly influenced by natural gas prices. MORE

 

 

New Energy Professionals: ISO New England 101 Tour

Wrap Up |  Presentation Slides

On Tuesday, April 10, ISO New England hosted nearly 30 CPES members at its backup control center in Windsor for a morning of “ISO-NE 101”. 

Subject matter experts from system and transmission planning discussed how ISO plans for the future power grid, ensuring that the regional transmission system can reliably deliver power to consumers under a wide range of future system conditions.

Next, external affairs representatives provided an overview of how state energy policies are driving changes regionally. Finally, a member from ISO’s operations team gave a tour of the control room and discussed how ISO’s operators ensure that the grid runs reliably 365 days a year.

 

Event Promotion

 

Join the New Energy Professionals of CPES for an “ISO-NE 101” overview and control room tour at the backup control center in Windsor on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 from 8:45 AM – 11:00 AM. The overview will be presented by ISO subject matter experts and will cover system and transmission planning and a regional update.

Subject matter experts from system and transmission planning will cover how ISO plans for the grid’s future. The focus will be on how ISO meets its central mission of ensuring that the regional transmission system can reliably deliver power to consumers under a wide range of future system conditions.

External affairs will present a regional update, providing a high level overview of state energy policies, including clean energy procurements and how these impact the overall energy system, and energy-security challenges.

Due to the high level of security, all visitors must be pre-registered and screened.  Further details and instructions will be emailed to you to complete the registration process. Priority will also be given to CPES New Energy Professional Members.  The tour is Full, but we are accepting wait list interest. Email KDube@ctpower.org

Interested in more information about ISO-NE before the Tour?  Check out Running the Electric Power Grid  full of interesting details on:

  • Inside the control room
  • Developing the plan
  • Responding in real-time conditions
  • Maintaining constant readiness
  • and much more…

 

You can also see what’s happening on the grid right now! 

Check out: isoexpress.iso-ne.com |  iso-ne.com/isotogo  |  isonewswire.com 

Follow  @isonewengland on Twitter

 

CPES Policy Committee Update: February 12, 2019

This update features policy, regulatory, legislative, and regional developments in Connecticut and New England. The policy updates are compiled by the CPES New Energy Professionals Team. If you are interested in learning more about the New Energy Professionals, the Policy Committee, or if you have ideas for future policy updates, we would welcome your input and feedback. Please send comments to Kathryn Dube, CPES Executive Director, via email: kdube@ctpower.org.

In this Update:

  • Energy & Technology Committee Meeting on February 14
  • Revolution Wind PPA Filed at Rhode Island PUC
  • Retail Energy Supply Association: Analysis Reveals Retail Electric Suppliers Could Have Saved Connecticut Consumers More than $14 Million in the First Month of 2019
  • ISO-NE capacity prices fall amid controversy over Vineyard Wind participation
  • Residential solar and storage breaks new ground as Sunrun wins ISO-NE capacity contract
  • DOE rolls back Obama-era lightbulb standards
  • Next Consumer Liaison Group Meeting March 14, Providence
  • New England’s Forward Capacity Auction Closes with Adequate Power System Resources for 2022-2023
  • The Rise of Microgrids and DERs: Out of Competition Came Innovation

LEGISLATIVE

ENERGY & TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
The next Energy & Technology Committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 14th at 3:15 pm. The agenda will be announced on February 13th on the CGA website.

The Bil Record Book, which contains proposed House and Senate bills, is available here.

REGIONAL/INDUSTRY

REVOLUTION WIND PPA FILED AT RHODE ISLAND PUC
A proposed PPA was filed with the RIPUC on Thursday for the Revolution Wind Project. Under the contract, National Grid would pay Deepwater, now part of Danish-owned Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind, a flat rate over 20 years of 9.8 cents per kilowatt hour for power from its Revolution Wind Farm, a 400-megawatt project proposed in Rhode Island Sound. The deal is projected to save Rhode Island about $90 million in energy costs over the life of the contract, or about 50 cents per month for the typical electric customer in the state. Read more

RETAIL ENERGY SUPPLY ASSOCIATION: ANALYSIS REVEALS RETAIL ELECTRIC SUPPLIERS COULD HAVE SAVED CONNECTICUT CONSUMERS MORE THAN $14 MILLION IN THE FIRST MONTH OF 2019
Connecticut residential energy customers could have saved more than $14 million dollars in just the first month of 2019 and received greater value for their energy dollars such as renewable energy, fixed price plans, and loyalty rewards by shopping for electricity from competitive retail electric suppliers, according to data released today by the Retail Energy Supply Association (RESA). The analysis upends a report by the Connecticut Office of Consumer Counsel (OCC) that recommends denying Connecticut consumers the right to choose who they buy their electricity from, leaving them captive to utility monopoly supply service. Read more

ISO-NE CAPACITY PRICES FALL AMID CONTROVERSY OVER VINEYARD WIND PARTICIPATION
In ISO-NE’s capacity auction this year, a limited amount of renewable resources were allowed to apply for special “renewable technology resource (RTR)” that would allow them to be exempt from the market’s price floor, the Minimum Offer Price Rule. Vineyard Wind sought RTR status, but was prohibited by a provision in ISO-NE’s tariff that limited RTR status to resources within the physical borders of a New England state. FERC declined to act on Vineyard Wind’s request or emergency motion in advance of FCA13. to file an emergency request for an auction delay. Read more

RESIDENTIAL SOLAR AND STORAGE BREAKS NEW GROUND AS SUNRUN WINS ISO-NE CAPACITY CONTRACT
ISO-NE on Monday became the first capacity market to accept an aggregated residential solar-plus-storage bid, awarding Sunrun for 20 MW of distributed grid capacity to be online in 2022. Read more

DOE ROLLS BACK OBAMA-ERA LIGHTBULB STANDARDS
The U.S. Department of Energy released a plan that would rescind lightbulb standards projected to save double the energy of any other efficiency regulation in history. The notice of proposed rulemaking, which has not yet been published in the Federal Register, would nullify Obama-era rules that would have expanded the types of lighting covered by stricter efficiency levels. Those higher levels were set to take effect in January 2020, according to federal law. Read more

NEXT CONSUMER LIASON GROUP MEETING MARCH 14, PROVIDENCE
The next meeting of the Consumer Liaison Group (CLG) will be held on March 14 at the Omni Providence Hotel. The topic will be, “Transforming the Power Sector: Customer Choice in a Changing Energy Landscape.”

NEW ENGLAND’S FORWARD CAPACITY AUCTION CLOSES WITH ADEQUATE POWER SYSTEM RESOURCES FOR 2022-2023
New England’s annual capacity auction for power system resources concluded Monday with sufficient resources to meet peak demand in 2022-2023, and preliminary results indicate the clearing price was the lowest in six years. Press release.

THE RISE OF MICROGRIDS AND DERS: OUT OF COMPETITION CAME INNOVATION
What was the impetus for the rise of microgrids and distributed energy resources? What role did competition play? A new special report from Microgrid Knowledge and NRG Energy explores the industry’s evolution. Here’s a look inside the history of electric competition.

CPES Policy Committee Update: January 22, 2019

This update features policy, regulatory, legislative, and regional developments in Connecticut and New England. The policy updates are compiled by the CPES New Energy Professionals Team. If you are interested in learning more about the New Energy Professionals, the Policy Committee, or if you have ideas for future policy updates, we would welcome your input and feedback. Please send comments to Kathryn Dube, CPES Executive Director, via email: kdube@ctpower.org.

In this Update:

  • CT Energy & Technology Committee Schedules Informational Hearings
  • Upcoming ISO-NE Forward Capacity Market Webinars

LEGISLATIVE
CT Energy & Technology Committee Schedules Informational Hearings
The CT General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Energy & Technology has scheduled three informational hearings.  See the committee calendar for the agendas:

  • Jan. 24, 1:30 p.m. E&T Committee Informational Meeting on Telecom
  • Jan. 31, 2:15 p.m. E&T Committee Informational Meeting for Generators
  • Feb. 5, 12:30 p.m. E&T Committee Meeting 
  • Feb. 5, 1:45 p.m. E&T Committee Info Meeting for Regulators and Utilities

The Bil Record Book, which contains proposed House and Senate bills, is available here.

REGIONAL/INDUSTRY
Upcoming ISO-NE Forward Capacity Market Webinars
FCM New Capacity Offer Price Development 2/14, 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. This webinar will provide market participants with information about the formulation of a new resource offer floor price and completing the cost workbook to support that price. The training is for new capacity resources, including generating resources, import capacity resources, demand resources, distributed generation, and energy storage resources.

FCM Show of Interest, 2/27.  These webinars will inform prospective project sponsors and market participants about the requirements and submittal process for the Show of Interest (SOI) for the fourteenth Forward Capacity Auction (FCA #14) to be held in February 2020 for the 2023-2024 Capacity Commitment Period.  The focus of these trainings is on how and when to submit the SOI and the information required for FCA qualification.

FCM Show of Interest for New Demand Resources 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
FCM Show of Interest for New Generation and Imports 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.