The mild winter that has moderated energy prices in New England shouldn’t lull policy makers into complacence about the region’s infrastructure needs, ISO-NE CEO Gordon van Welie said last week.
In a Jan. 21 presentation to the media on the state of the energy market, van Welie acknowledged that this winter has been warmer than the previous two, resulting in less demand for power and natural gas and a reduction in pipeline constraints.
“But this is New England,” van Welie said. “Winter’s not over yet, and a mild winter or two doesn’t guarantee we won’t have extremely cold winters again.”
The increasing reliance on natural gas-fired generation and retirements of oil- and coal-fired power plants have created “an urgent need for more energy infrastructure,” he said.
ISO-NE began a winter reliability program for 2013-2014 that was essentially repeated for the current season. That supplemental program provided financial incentives for oil-fired generators to store more oil than they otherwise would have. It has encouraged dual-fuel capable generation that can switch from gas to oil.
Although the RTO has added $7 billion in transmission since 2003 and has generation projects totaling about 9,500 MW in its transmission queue, plant retirements are causing localized stresses.
“We’re already seeing worrisome conditions in greater Boston, with the recent retirement of the Salem Harbor station and delays in development of the proposed Footprint natural gas power plant. That area will be short of needed resources as soon as 2016,” van Welie said.
Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island also are areas of concern, with Brayton Point’s planned retirement in 2017.
In addition, the RTO hasn’t been able to add natural gas pipeline capacity fast enough to react to increased power and heating demand.
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For each of the last three winters, natural gas prices have risen steeply, showing the effects of increasing pipeline constraints. On Jan. 1, 2014, the spot price for natural gas in New England was nearly $20 higher than the price paid in most of the country.
“They were not only the highest forward prices in the U.S.; at the time, they were the highest on the planet,” van Welie said.
He said ensuring the reliability of the power system will likely require more gas pipelines, more liquefied natural gas storage and more transmission lines.
“The region faces a conundrum: who will be the customer to ensure new gas infrastructure is built? Will it be end-use electricity consumers or electricity producers — that is, generators?” he asked. “Thus far, electric generators have not signed up for additional gas infrastructure and as a result, the New England states have been considering making an investment in additional gas infrastructure on behalf of consumers.
“Until more infrastructure is added, consumers can expect volatile pricing for both natural gas and wholesale power, with price spikes when either the pipeline or power system is operating under stressed conditions,” he said.
A U.S. Department of Energy-funded study on gas-electric coordination suggests natural gas pipeline operators create an independent system operator (ISO) to coordinate communications with electric grid operators.
The proposal is one of nine recommendations in a white paper on long-term electric and natural gas infrastructure requirements, conducted by the Illinois Institute of Technology for the Eastern Interconnection States’ Planning Council (EISPC) and the National Association of Utility Regulatory Commissioners. Although dated November 2014, the report was released by NARUC only last week.
Most of the report’s other recommendations — such as aligning daily gas and electric market schedules, building more pipelines to serve growing electric load and improving training — have been under discussion or development by industry participants for more than a year.
For example, in November 2013, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a rule allowing pipeline operators to exchange non-public operational information with RTOs. (See FERC OKs Gas-Electric Talk.)
But the report notes that while public domain information “is generally shared between pipeline operators and ISOs,” concerns about proprietary information remain.
“[E]stablishing a coordinator in the natural gas industry that could directly communicate with ISOs through appropriate protocols could be an option to solve the confidentiality problem and enhance the information sharing in natural gas-electric system planning,” the report says.
The recommendation doesn’t go as far as those from some other commentators, who have suggested a “Regional Pipeline Organization” or a centralized gas trading platform. (See Gas Trading Platform Finds Few Takers at Moeller Meeting.)
The report also calls for integrating natural gas availability into the North American Electric Reliability Corp.’s long-term and seasonal reliability assessments and for improvements to NERC’s Generator Availability Data System to better track generator outages resulting from a lack of gas supply.
The EISPC, which is funded by the Department of Energy, is a consortium of state-level agencies responsible for siting electric transmission across the 39 states in the Eastern Interconnection.
EISPC President David Boyd, a member of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, said the report will help regulators overcome challenges of the electric industry’s increased dependence on pipelines.
“As this report spells out, there are a number of differences between the two industries that, if not reconciled, could have unintended consequences for consumers,” he said in a statement.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Thursday rejected the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency’s request for an extended waiver that would allow it to use capacity resources outside of the Commonwealth Edison Locational Deliverability Area to meet its internal resource requirement in serving its Naperville, Ill., load. (ER14-1681-001).
Last May, FERC granted IMEA a waiver for the 2017/18 delivery year after the ComEd LDA last year was modeled for the first time with a separate variable resource requirement curve (ER14-1681).
In June, IMEA asked FERC to clarify that the waiver extended beyond the one delivery year to the “term of the life of IMEA’s resource investments and commitments or at a minimum for the five-year minimum term of the [Fixed Resource Requirement] Alternative.”
Without a waiver, IMEA said it will be subject to unnecessary financial risks in any delivery year for which PJM uses a separate VRR curve, estimating the annual penalty charges at $100 million.
In its Jan. 22 order, FERC said it approved the one-year waiver because the short notice of PJM’s announcement to establish the separate VRR curve left IMEA little time to prepare to meet the internal resource requirement. “For subsequent delivery years, IMEA has sufficient time to prepare for the requirements of the FRR Alternative,” the commission said.
While IMEA contended that a longer waiver would have no adverse effects, FERC said it could expose customers in the ComEd LDA to higher prices because the aggregate internal resource requirement would need to be increased in future delivery years.
If IMEA decides not to continue under the FRR Alternative, FERC said, it could seek early termination from that status for the Naperville load and instead participate in PJM’s capacity auctions.
FERC’s ruling does not bode well for the waiver request IMEA filed earlier this month for this May’s Base Residual Auction (ER15-834).
But it may get some relief from PJM.
In December, stakeholders agreed to a problem statement proposed by Vice President of Market Operations Stu Bresler to review modeling practices that he said may be shortchanging loads with transmission agreements that pre-date the RTO’s capacity market. (See PJM MIC OKs Capacity Transfer Rights Query.)
Members approved a related issue charge earlier this month, agreeing to consider adding a mechanism in the capacity market similar to one used to allocate auction revenue rights to historical transmission paths in the energy market.
By Suzanne Herel, Michael Brooks and Rich Heidorn Jr.
More than 60 parties filed comments or protests in response to PJM’s Capacity Performance proposal before last week’s deadline, with states and load-serving entities expressing skepticism over the need for a major overhaul and generators split over elements they like and others they insist must be changed.
The Electric Power Supply Association, which represents generators, was singularly conflicted, saying it “generally supports” the proposal, but joined with other generators in complaining that the proposed changes to force majeure provisions were unduly punitive.
EPSA also joined states and LSEs in criticizing the limited stakeholder input before PJM’s Board of Managers made its unilateral filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Dec. 12. But the association said implementation of the new structure should not be delayed by needed changes.
In a 51-page filing, PJM’s Independent Market Monitor said it “strongly supports” the proposal but listed numerous changes it said were needed to prevent market manipulation and clarify the oversight roles of PJM and the Monitor.
Most other commenters fell clearly into camps of supporters or opponents.
PJM’s proposal would increase the reliability expectations of capacity resources with a “no excuses” policy. It is expected to result in both larger capacity payments and higher penalties for non-performance. (See What You Need to Know about PJM’s Capacity Performance Proposal.)
The details are outlined in nearly 1,300 pages filed in two dockets:
EL15-29 contains proposed changes to PJM’s Operating Agreement and Tariff “to correct present deficiencies in those agreements on matters of resource performance and excuses for resource performance.”
ER15-623 proposes changes to the Reliability Pricing Model rules in the Tariff and Reliability Assurance Agreement.
Below is a summary of the main arguments presented in the comments.
Supporters
Those supporting the proposal included the Natural Gas Supply Association, America’s Natural Gas Alliance and the Energy Storage Association.
“The Capacity Resource Performance provision would begin to address PJM’s current difficulties by incenting investments by generators that would help them perform more reliably and economically even during periods of peak demand,” said the Natural Gas Supply Association, which represents gas producers and marketers.
The Energy Storage Association lauded the proposal as an opportunity for energy storage resources to participate in PJM’s capacity market.
Exelon said it “strongly agrees with PJM on the urgent need” for the changes to address “an imminent reliability crisis due to a capacity market design that fails to ensure that generators who have made capacity commitments actually perform when they are needed.”
Exelon, the nation’s largest nuclear operator, stands to benefit perhaps more than any other market participant from the proposal’s incentives to ensure generators have secure fuel supplies.
Penalties, Force Majeure
Unlike most other generators, Exelon complained that PJM’s proposed non-performance penalties were too lax. It said the RTO’s method for determining the hourly penalty rate is flawed and will result in much lower penalties than intended. It also called on the commission to clarify that a forced outage due to fuel unavailability during emergencies, or “performance assessment hours,” will result in automatic referral to the commission for violation of the Tariff.
Other generators complained that the penalties are already too harsh.
“Redefining force majeure to apply only when catastrophic conditions occur over the entire PJM region is unnecessarily broad and, as applied, too punitive to generators,” the PJM Power Providers (P3 Group) said. “Notwithstanding the most prudent investments, it is nonetheless impossible for every generator to foresee every eventuality. Equally as important, it is illogical to apply a penalty for nonperformance of a generator based on the requirement that the entire PJM operational system would need to be negatively impacted.”
Not Enough
American Electric Power, Dayton Power and Light, FirstEnergy, Buckeye Power and East Kentucky Power Cooperative also called for a reduction in proposed non-performance penalties in a 186-page filing.
The group, filing as the PJM Utilities Coalition, said the proposal is insufficient to correct a revenue inadequacy problem that they said is threatening reliability. They said that the proposal fails to eliminate incentives for bidding as a price-taker and that clearing multiple products simultaneously with different performance obligations will result in price suppression.
Too Much, Too Expensive
Load-serving entities, however, complained that PJM’s redesign is overkill and will result in unnecessary price increases.
“Capacity Performance is too much, too quickly, for no clearly stated reason,” the Old Dominion and Southern Maryland electric cooperatives said in a joint filing with American Municipal Power.
The Transition Coalition — whose members include the PJM Industrial Customer Coalition, cooperatives and other load-serving entities — said its members estimate the proposal would cost as much as $2.8 billion in the 2016/17 delivery year and $3.6 billion in the 2017/18 delivery year. “What will we get in return for billions of dollars in new payments?” it asked.
Similarly, Pepco Holdings Inc. said PJM should be required to provide a more thorough analysis of its proposal’s impacts, including costs and benefits.
Some commenters took aim at the transition provisions that would apply to resources that clear in the base capacity auctions this May and in 2016.
“Acceptance would constitute retroactive ratemaking,” the Retail Energy Supply Association said, while Direct Energy maintained the transition mechanism contained “billions of dollars in unforeseen costs on the region.”
Impact on Renewables
Public interest organizations said that renewable, energy efficiency and demand response resources would be disadvantaged by the new market structure, concerns echoed by the American Wind Energy and Solar Energy Industries associations.
The Environmental Defense Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club, the Sustainable FERC Project and the Union of Concerned Scientists filed a joint protest, calling on FERC to either reject the proposal, set it for evidentiary hearing or exempt non-fossil fuel resources from the proposed penalties.
“Unlike fuel-based generation, renewable generation and non-fuel-based demand-side resources cannot become available all year round through upgrades, and cannot avail themselves to the benefits of being able to firm up fuel supply and pass associated costs to consumers accorded to fuel-based generation under this rule,” the group said.
States: Evidentiary Hearing Needed
The concerns of the states within PJM’s territory differed, with some warning of higher rates and others complaining the proposal violates state resource planning authority. Almost all states, even those who generally support PJM’s overhaul efforts, said the proposal needed changes as a result of it being rushed without adequate stakeholder input. Many also called for FERC to hold an evidentiary hearing.
The Organization of PJM States Inc. (OPSI) said it could not determine the need for the proposal or whether it would result in just rates because PJM had not provided sufficient analysis.
“To better quantify the impact of the proposal on customers’ rates, and on system operations and grid reliability … requires the development, presentation and evaluation of data that have not yet been provided by PJM.”
Capacity Performance is “Overreaction”
Some stakeholders also said the proposal changes more than is necessary.
The Delaware Public Service Commission called the proposal “an overreaction” to the poor generator response in January 2014. “All stakeholders should have an opportunity to fully evaluate the [proposal] before it is implemented with undeterminable and questionable costs and unquantified benefits,” it said.
In a joint protest, consumer advocates in Maryland, New Jersey, D.C., Delaware, Ohio and Illinois, along with the PJM Industrial Customer Coalition, said the proposal is “unnecessarily costly and disproportionate to the level of changes that are required. The sole focus should be on revamping the structure of penalties that applies to cleared capacity resources, to align actual performance with the level of revenue that cleared capacity resources currently receive.”
The Illinois Commerce Commission agreed. “Addressing deficiencies revealed by 2014’s winter conditions is a critical need, but the [proposal] goes far beyond addressing the specific issues that likely contributed to poor generator performance during this period,” the ICC said. “Rather, the [proposal] represents an extensive revision and, in some of its elements, is an unnecessary reworking of the RPM model.”
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission said it supports PJM’s changes to generators’ performance requirement. But it said FERC should “reject or modify the other changes to PJM’s Tariff filing wherein PJM seeks to unilaterally and, without stakeholder support, alter the provisions of RPM that have developed through much deliberation by FERC, PJM and stakeholders and that contribute to the functioning of healthy wholesale markets.”
For example, the PUC said it was concerned that how PJM defines what qualifies as a Capacity Performance resource would affect DR resources. “The characteristics of DR providers are not compatible with PJM’s proposed trading restrictions and should be eliminated for these types of resources given the fundamental nature of the underlying characteristics of residential, business and industrial customers,” the commission said.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week approved SPP’s market-to-market coordination rules with MISO, after the two RTOs resolved an earlier dispute over the creation of flowgates (ER13-1864).
SPP had originally proposed restrictions on the right of either RTO to designate a new M2M flowgate — transmission lines or transformers monitored for overloads — outside of their mutually agreed-upon scheduling timeframes.
SPP would have allowed the creation of flowgates during extenuating circumstances or when the RTO seeking a new designation compensated the other for any re-dispatch that resulted.
PJM and Exelon filed comments supporting SPP’s position, with Exelon noting that MISO created 500 new flowgates between September 2011 and October 2012, while PJM designated only 80. SPP’s transmission owners also supported the restrictions, citing the administrative burdens of complicated resettlement processes related to re-dispatches.
MISO and its Independent Market Monitor opposed SPP’s proposal, which they said would effectively give one RTO veto power. The Monitor noted that M2M flowgates are dynamic, responding to changes in outages and constraint definitions.
Compromise Reached
Following a technical conference last September, SPP agreed to drop its prohibition in a compromise with MISO. The RTOs agreed on new language, which FERC accepted in last week’s order, spelling out the conditions under which one RTO will be compensated by the other for costs stemming from flowgate designations.
In its Jan. 22 order, the commission also agreed to allow the two RTOs to defer a day-ahead firm-flow entitlement exchange process until they decide whether its implementation outweighs its costs.
FERC also ordered SPP to report back to the commission every six months on its progress resolving concerns over interface bus modeling methodologies. The MISO Monitor says disparities in the methodologies used by MISO and PJM is resulting in double counting of congestion. (See related story, Patton Asks FERC to Set Deadline on PJM-MISO Interface Pricing Dispute.)
Noting that PJM and MISO have been unable to resolve their differences over two years of discussions, the commission said “we anticipate … that SPP and MISO could face technical challenges in identifying the appropriate pricing methodologies.”
MISO-SPP Flow Dispute not Affected
The order does not affect a separate dispute between MISO and SPP over flows between MISO’s northern and southern regions. MISO began limiting flows between the regions last spring after SPP complained that MISO breached their joint operating agreement by moving power over its transmission footprint in excess of a 1,000-MW physical contract path.
The commission said that issue, the subject of a separate docket (EL11-34), was beyond the scope of this proceeding.
Interface Pricing Flaw: Today, the full effect of transactions on the MISO M2M constraint is modeled by both RTOs.(Source: Potomac Economics)
WASHINGTON — MISO’s Independent Market Monitor urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last week to resolve a standoff between MISO and PJM over interface pricing that he said is costing consumers millions.
“We’re seeing tens of millions of dollars in uplift. We see transactions being scheduled that are not efficient. And the only way to really solve this is to get prices right,” MISO Market Monitor David Patton told commissioners during a panel discussion with RTO representatives and state regulators at FERC’s Jan. 22 meeting.
But PJM Market Monitor Joe Bowring and Stu Bresler, PJM vice president of market operations, said pressure for an immediate resolution could be short-sighted. “We have to be careful an arbitrary deadline does not force a bad answer rather than getting to the right answer,” Bowring said.
“I think a deadline that required a solution in a very near timeframe would be very difficult and potentially damaging if it resulted in an inferior approach,” agreed Bresler.
Whether the commissioners will set a deadline to help spur a resolution is unclear.
“I think we want to distill what we have heard today and get the sense of where the commissioners are,” Chairman Cheryl LaFleur said at a press conference following the meeting.
Two Years
MISO and PJM have been working for two years to resolve differences in the way they price transactions at interface buses.
The RTOs agree that the current methods undermine efficient scheduling of power because they cause both RTOs to model the same constraint, resulting in double-counting.
Patton says transactions are overcompensated when they are expected to relieve a constraint, and overcharged when they are expected to contribute to congestion. Interface pricing flaws “cost MISO some money. It costs PJM a huge amount,” he said.
Patton contends that PJM’s method exaggerates the effects of imports and exports on transmission constraints near the seam. As a result, he said, scheduling incentives have been inflated by as much as 600% at the Cook-Palisades interface in Michigan, the most active M2M constraint last winter.
“We massively overpriced congestion last winter and it resulted in an average of something like 3 GW being exported from PJM to MISO. This was during the timeframe when we were just coming out of the polar vortex and PJM had just incurred half a billion dollars in uplift, committing tons of generation under conservative operations, and they’re exporting gigawatts to MISO, where it’s demonstrably less valuable,” Patton added.
Bresler said he didn’t see the correlation. “PJM has made changes to its interface definitions in direct response to concern from MISO. Given the change we made, I’m not sure I understand the reference … to the polar vortex and the uplift,” he said.
Patton recommends removing the congestion component of the LMP for the non-monitoring RTO.
PJM offered an alternative in which each RTO would set its interface bus price relative to a common set of interfaces.
FERC to Set Deadline?
Patton said FERC should set a deadline for an agreement because there have only been two solutions under consideration for more than a year.
“We’ve had an incredible amount of analysis on those two solutions. Obviously, I think there’s one clearly correct answer, but not everyone agrees with me,” he said to laughter. “I think if we did have a deadline to file, it would be useful just to file and say ‘We’re agreeing to disagree, and here are the pros and cons of these two solutions that we have an enormous amount of research on, and then allow the commission to maybe weigh in and give some guidance and push the needle in one direction or the other.”
“We really need FERC’s involvement in this issue. We need a deadline to file a solution to this,” Patton told commissioners.
Bowring said he didn’t think a hard deadline made sense, although he suggested the RTOs could report back to the commission in June. “If we knew the answer, we would have told you already. We don’t.”
Bresler said Patton’s proposed solution to interface pricing could have negative impacts elsewhere.
“PJM has always defined our interface prices so that we reflect the impact of interchange transactions on the transmission system and more specifically on the transmission constraints which we are actually operating,” Bresler said. “And part of the solution that Dr. Patton has proposed is essentially eliminating the impact of some transmission constraints in the interface price.
“That may end up being the right solution,” Bresler added. “But I think the difficulty … is making sure that doing so doesn’t have detrimental effects elsewhere.”
LaFleur expressed frustration with the inability of the two RTOs to resolve the impasse.
“I am at least actively contemplating, should we do something more active than ask for another schedule, which is what we decided to do [in 2013] after a lot of tough talk,” she said. She acknowledged work done by the RTOs to address seams issues but added, “I’ve been a little disappointed with the level of progress on some of the thorniest issues, many of which have come before us today.”
Commissioner Philip Moeller said the problems are “partly our fault.”
“We kind of took our foot off the gas and stopped requiring the quarterly reports and basically lost focus on the fact that these issues were not going away,” he said.
Michigan Public Service Commissioner Greg White, another panelist, agreed a deadline could increase the parties’ “sense of urgency” but said he didn’t want to “end up with a product that is inferior because of a lack of time.”
Joint and Common Market Progress
The bus interface pricing issue has proven to be perhaps the most intractable issue facing PJM and MISO’s Joint and Common Market initiative, a joint stakeholder process to address seams issues.
Patton said the JCM process has borne fruit. He said MISO’s ability to export capacity into PJM has increased, although the two parties haven’t solved the underlying problems. “So while I don’t think we structurally have solved the problem and I don’t see a filing coming any time soon that will structurally solve this, I think the priority has diminished.”
Bowring was unapologetic. “There will continue to be issues as long as there are very substantial differences between the design for procuring capacity in MISO and the design for procuring capacity in PJM,” he said. “The … notion that there should be transfers no matter what I think is excessively simple-minded.”
Elizabeth Jacobs, chair of the Iowa Utilities Board, who represented the Organization of MISO States on the panel, said she was encouraged by MISO and PJM’s plans to introduce Coordinated Transaction Scheduling to improve interchange optimization. (See “PJM Posts MISO Price Predictions Before CTS Vote” in Market Implementation Committee Briefs, Jan. 12, 2015.) Jacobs noted that while the panel discussion focused on the PJM-MISO seam, many MISO members are facing new seams issues with an expanded SPP.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said last week that it intends to tighten the rules on the use of “hold harmless” commitments in support of merger applications and will prohibit commitments that are limited in duration, which could leave ratepayers vulnerable.
In a proposed policy statement (PL15-3), the commission said it was better defining the costs subject to such commitments and the accounting methods used to track them. The commission will accept comments on the proposal, which it called a reaffirmation of its 1996 Merger Policy Statement (Order 592), for 60 days.
FERC noted that hold harmless commitments — agreements not to seek recovery of transaction-related costs in rates unless they are offset by transaction-related savings — have become a common feature of merger applications under section 203 of the Federal Power Act (FPA) over the last decade.
The commission said, however, that “it has never defined those costs with much specificity, leading to inconsistency with respect to this issue.”
The policy statement’s definition includes the costs of consummating a transaction (e.g., legal, investment advisory, accounting and financing costs) and the capital and operating costs incurred to achieve merger synergies (e.g., severance payments, accounting and operating systems integration costs).
The commission said requiring applicants to explain how they track the costs will help ensure that they are not recovered in rates without commission approval.
Time Limits
The Merger Policy Statement requires that hold harmless commitments must protect customers “for a significant period of time following the merger,” a period that the commission has typically defined as five years.
FERC said it now realizes that such a limit “raises the risk that transaction-related costs could be included in future formula rate billings without applicants making the showing of offsetting savings.”
The commission said its concern arose from its experience auditing utilities with hold harmless commitments, the concerns of protestors in previous merger applications and the proposed treatment of certain categories of costs.
“For example, an applicant could try to include transaction-related costs in formula rates without making a showing of offsetting savings if the costs, though incurred during the hold harmless period, do not enter the ratemaking process until after the hold harmless period expires … Similarly, limiting the applicability of hold harmless commitments to specific time periods may incentivize applicants to delay incurring some types of transaction-related costs until after the hold harmless period expires.”
The new policy, FERC said, ensures “that the focus of a hold harmless commitment [is] on whether a cost is transaction-related, and not on when the cost is incurred.”
FERC also said removing the time limit will ensure proper treatment of costs that should be capitalized as an asset during the hold harmless period, but whose cost recovery would occur as the asset is depreciated over future periods that extend beyond the hold harmless period.
Changes are Prospective
The commission also reiterated its opposition to including acquisition premiums as transaction-related costs. It said it would continue to require a showing of “specific, measurable and substantial benefits to ratepayers” for recovery in a subsequent FPA section 205 proceeding.
FERC said the policy changes would apply prospectively and would not affect existing commitments or pending merger applications.
Mike Tidewell, director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network (L), and Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen’s energy program (R), at an October 2014 press conference in Baltimore by activists opposing Exelon’s proposed acquisition of Pepco Holdings Inc. Already approved by FERC, the merger still must clear state regulators.
Environmentalists last week continued their campaign against Exelon’s proposed $6.8 billion takeover of Pepco Holdings Inc., with activists urging the D.C. Council to oppose the deal and a renewable energy think tank saying it would hurt both consumers and green energy.
At a council hearing Friday, environmentalists said Exelon power-generation investments would make it hostile to rooftop solar, unlike Pepco, which only distributes electricity. Approval of the deal is in the hands of the D.C. Public Service Commission but the council is an intervener in the regulatory proceedings and could influence regulators’ decision.
“They view renewable power and sustainability as a threat to their core business of selling electricity,” said Larry Martin of the D.C. chapter of the Sierra Club, according to a report in The Washington Post. “This merger is not contributing to the public interest.”
Mary M. Cheh, chair of the council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment told the Post that the hearing had left her skeptical that the deal would benefit District residents.
No one from Pepco, Exelon, the PSC or the District’s Office of the People’s Counsel testified at the hearing. They are expected to appear at a hearing of the council’s Committee on Business, Consumer and Regulatory Affairs on Jan. 29.
Earlier last week, the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis joined the chorus of voices calling for rejection of the deal.
The Cleveland-based think tank, which supports reduced dependence on coal and other non-renewable energy resources, said in a Jan. 21 report that the merger would undermine D.C.’s renewable-energy initiatives.
It said the deal could mean higher rates for current Pepco customers because Exelon will need to earn returns to justify the $2.5 billion acquisition premium Exelon has offered.
Exelon “has been challenged in recent years by low wholesale power prices driven by cheap natural gas, reduced demand for power and the growth of renewable energy and energy efficiency,” wrote the report’s authors, Cathy Kunkel and Tom Sanzillo.
They wrote that if the acquisition is approved, Exelon will “acquire a stable earnings stream from Pepco’s regulated utilities that would help Exelon balance out the volatility of its merchant electricity generation business, which has proven susceptible to weakness in the competitive energy markets.”
“A merger with Exelon would also subject ratepayers to risks associated with Exelon’s aging nuclear fleet,” the report said. “Residents and businesses may be asked to accept rate increases and policy accommodations to assist Exelon with the management of aging nuclear plants.”
Exelon spokesman Paul Elsberg said the report contains some errors and draws incorrect conclusions.
“Customer rates will not increase as a result of the Exelon-Pepco Holdings merger and, in fact, by combining our companies, we will operate more efficiently and generate cost savings that will be passed on to customers,” he said Friday.
Elsberg said the two companies’ support for renewable energy will continue, noting that Exelon is the 11th largest U.S. wind producer and has made investments in solar, including the nation’s largest urban solar project in Chicago. “Our utilities will continue to facilitate customers’ installation of solar panels on their homes and businesses,” he said.
Kunkel said the study was not commissioned by any other group. She said the proposed merger drew the Cleveland think tank’s attention for several reasons.“IEEFA follows developments in the utility industry nationally,” she said Friday. “We see this case as part of a larger trend of major utilities moving increasingly towards regulated operations, and we also think it has important implications for renewable energy policy in the mid-Atlantic.”
The merger has already gained the approval of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Virginia regulators. The staff of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has reached a settlement with Exelon that would give Atlantic City Electric customers $62 million in rate credits.
Exelon still needs the approval of Maryland, D.C. and Delaware. Public advocates in both states and the District have come out publicly against the merger under the current offer.
Refinery Files for Permit to Build $100 million Hydrogen Plant
PBF Energy, owners of the state’s only refinery, is seeking permission to build a $100 million hydrogen plant as part of a plan to begin refining ultra-low sulfur fuel at the Delaware City facility.
PBF applied to the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control for water intake and discharge permits for the project. Any construction along the state’s coastline needs Coastal Zone Act approvals.
PBF said in the application that the new plant would allow removal of more than 20,000 tons of sulfur from products made at the refinery. PBF in October announced it was cancelling plans to build a different, $1 billion plant on the site.
Natural Gas Rate Hikes Waiting for Two New ICC Members
Rate-increase proposals from two Integrys gas utilities are on hold until Gov. Bruce Rauner names two new members to the Commerce Commission to replace Chairman Doug Scott and Commissioner John Colgan, whose terms ended yesterday.
North Shore Gas and Peoples Gas have applied for increases to their base rates. Bills for Peoples customers would increase by about $5 a month and North Shore bills by about $2.50 a month.
Both companies are also seeking substantial boosts to their monthly fixed-rate customer charges. Peoples has requested a 43% increase in its $27 monthly fee to $38.50. Its fee is already the second-highest of any utility in the Midwest. North Shore is seeking a 24% increase of its monthly service charge to $29.55. Consumer groups and the state attorney general’s office have already voiced opposition.
General Assembly Starts with New Legislation for Renewable Energy
Environmentalists and other activists rallied outside the State House to mark the introduction of a renewable energy bill at the start of the state’s lawmaking season.
Sen. Brian J. Feldman of Montgomery County sponsored a bill that would require 40% of the state’s electricity come from renewable sources by 2025. The state’s utilities got 10% of their electricity from renewable sources last year.
The bill’s passage is a long shot though. Larry Hogan, who gets sworn in on Wednesday as governor, says ratepayers should not be asked to pay a premium for renewable power. The chairman of the House Economic Matters Committee, which handles such legislation, said he doesn’t see it passing this year.
PSC Approves Increase for Consumers Energy Gas Rate
The Public Service Commission narrowly approved a 2.4% gas-rate increase for Consumers Energy. The monthly bill for a typical residential customer will go up by about $1.97.
Consumers Energy asked for an $88 million rate increase. The PSC approved $45 million. The company said it needed the increase to offset increased operating and maintenance expenses. It was its first contested rate increase since 2010.
Opposition Growing to Xcel’s Plan for 62-MW Solar Project
Local residents want more say over a NextEra Energy Resources plan to build a 62-MW solar project on 500 acres of farmland in southwestern Minnesota.
Under state law, approval of solar projects of more than 50 MW shifts from local control to state regulators. Local opponents of the $100 million NextEra project, which would sell its output to Xcel Energy’s distribution system, say their rights are being ignored in the state’s quest to produce more renewable energy. The state has set a goal of developing 1.5% of its electricity by solar by 2020.
“If loss of local control, decreased property values, increased cost of electricity or future cleanup issues of a 500-acre industrial site is a concern, then this project is a concern,” farmer Greg Boerboom wrote in a letter to The Marshall Independent. “This project, mandated by the metro members of our Minnesota Legislature along with our governor, ignored the facts about the inefficacy of solar power.”
Rail Authority Gives Backing to Sandpiper Pipeline Plan
The Anoka County Regional Rail Authority has voiced its support for a proposed oil pipeline that would run from North Dakota through Minnesota to Wisconsin, relieving some of the traffic from congested rail lines in the northern Great Plains.
The seven-member authority voted to endorse the Sandpiper Pipeline in part because it will help relieve rail congestion on the Burlington-Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) route through Minnesota. Commissioner Jim Kordiak said he was “very supportive” of the plan because he sees the pipeline as a much safer way to transport crude oil from North Dakota’s Bakken field.
Two Bills Aimed at Supporting Solar Introduced to General Assembly
The state’s solar industry, experiencing a rapid slowdown tied to the end of utility rebates, could get a boost if two measures introduced in the General Assembly are approved.
The first proposal would raise the limit on solar installations that qualify for net metering, from the current 100 kW to 1 MW. A second proposal eliminates the size cap and would allow for a yearly “true-up” of net generation, which would let solar owners bank generation credits for a year, rather than the current month. Excess generation is currently tabulated monthly at a reduced-fuel cost, about 2 cents/kWh.
“I’m trying to find some place that is workable for a new industry and workable for how the current power producers work,” said Rep. T.J. Berry, sponsor of one of the bills.
The Public Service Commission approved an increase of Ameren Missouri’s energy efficiency fee from $3.70 a month for a typical customer to $6 a month starting Jan. 27. The fee finances the company’s demand-side management programs and other efficiency efforts.
Anne Boyle, whose family’s political roots go back to her great-grandfather’s service in the Legislature, retired from the Public Service Commission after 20 years.
Boyle, a Democrat, often found herself fighting for the rights of “the little guy,” according to fellow PSC Commissioner Frank Landis, a Republican. “Anne truly believed in doing the most that she could to better the quality of life for the underprivileged,” Landis said. “She believed it. She acted on it. And she lived it.”
Xcel Energy is reaching out to landowners in preparation for building a 159-mile, 345-kV transmission line that would run from Texas to New Mexico.
The Tuco-Yoakum-Hobbs project is in its early stages, according to the company. If it gains regulatory approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and state agencies, it could go into service in 2020. The company said the $237 million project is necessary to deliver power to the growing natural gas and oil industry in West Texas and in New Mexico.
The transmission line is one of more than 44 possible projects proposed by Southwest Public Service Co., Xcel’s subsidiary in New Mexico. The company submitted plans for those projects, which would cost an estimated $557 million, to SPP in 2014.
The Utilities Commission says that Duke Energy’s two utilities are generating higher rates of return than allowed, but that the rates are dropping to the allowed levels.
Both Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress experienced dramatic increases in rates of return after a 2013 rate case. Duke Carolinas’ overall return peaked at 8.36% in June, nearly half a percentage point above the allowed 7.88%. Duke Progress’ overall return was 8.06%, above the 7.55% allowed.
The agency’s staff said cold weather at the start of 2014 may have been a factor for the increases but that the commission could take action if the figures don’t stay in line with the allowed margin.
Bill Could Undo Regulations to Reduce Natural Gas Flaring and Oil Conditioning
Legislators are seeking to roll back state regulations that call for a decrease in gas flaring at oil wells and a reduction in the volatility of crude oil that will be transported by rail and road.
The rule on gas flaring calls for oil producers to capture 77% of wellhead natural gas this year, 85% by 2016 and 90% by 2020. Some oil producers, who burn off associated natural gas from oil wells where they have not yet built pipelines to capture the gas, have cut back production in order to reach the 2015 goals. The rule ordering oil transporters to condition crude to make it safer for transport is set to go into effect April 1.
The new rules, approved by the Industrial Commission, did not go through the Legislative Assembly’s Administrative Rules Committee. Putting both regulations through legislative review could take an additional nine to 10 months.
PUCO Holds Hearing on FirstEnergy’s Guaranteed Return Plan for Plants
About 100 people attended the first of three public hearings on FirstEnergy’s “electric security” plan that would allow its largest generating plants to receive a guaranteed price from customers.
Opinion was split at the Public Utilities Commission hearing. FirstEnergy said the plan would keep the plants open in the face of increased competition from natural gas-fired plants and wind farms, and save consumers billions of dollars. Several elected officials and business owners came to express their support for the plan.
But some consumer advocates complained that ratepayers were being asked to subsidize the energy company to the tune of billions. “FirstEnergy doesn’t play by the rules,” said Dex Sims, a member of the Communities United for Responsible Energy. An evidentiary hearing is set for Jan. 28.
PUC Chief Says Philly’s Gas Lines Pose Risk to City Residents
The chairman of the Public Utility Commission said almost half of Philadelphia Gas Works’ natural gas lines are “at risk” and announced a comprehensive program to review the city-owned utility’s pipeline safety and replacement program.
Chairman Robert Powelson said the city’s residents are “threatened by at-risk pipelines and an alarmingly slow replacement schedule.” He said the company’s current plans to replace its riskiest gas mains in 88 years is insufficient.
PGW maintains the largest municipal-owned system in the U.S., with about 1,500 miles of cast iron pipes, some dating to the 1800s. The PUC said it costs about $1.4 million to replace each mile in Philadelphia.
Public officials received a briefing last week on a proposed 1,134-mile crude-oil pipeline to run from North Dakota, through South Dakota and eventually terminate in Illinois.
The Dakota Access Pipeline, with an estimated price of $3.78 billion, is designed to carry Bakken crude from the North Dakota oil fields to other pipelines in Illinois, and then to refineries.
The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission is holding a public hearing Thursday in Sioux Falls on the project. Depending on regulatory approval, construction is to begin early 2016 and be completed the following year. It is designed to carry up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil a day.
Regulatory Authority Approves Plains & Eastern Clean Line
The Regulatory Authority has approved the Plains & Eastern Clean Line, a $2 billion, 700-mile transmission line designed to bring Oklahoma wind power to Memphis.
The authority granted a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, the final approval needed. The project already had received necessary approvals from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the U.S. Department of Energy. Construction is set to begin soon, with the line going into operation by 2019.
More Opposition to Proposed Tx Lines for Prince William County Data Center
More than 800 residents packed a high school auditorium to protest the proposed construction of a transmission line to serve a data center in a semi-rural district near D.C.
Opposition formed quickly to the Dominion Virginia Power proposal, for which the company has not yet applied for permits with the State Corporation Commission.
Although Dominion has not identified the high-load customer for the transmission line, some elected officials have said the data center is to be built for Amazon.com. Dominion has prepared two separate route plans for the line — one above-ground, and one with portions to be underground. The part-underground route, which would run along Interstate 66, is estimated to cost about $140 million, nearly $80 million more than the aerial line.
Appalachian Power Plans to Upgrade 21-Mile Transmission Line
Appalachian Power announced last week it plans to upgrade a 69-kV transmission line that dates back to 1917.
The line, which runs 21 miles from Bland and Wythe counties in Virginia to Mercer County, W. Va., would be upgraded to 138 kV. The company said it needs the line to serve bigger load from an increased population.
The project could be completed by 2018 at an estimated cost of $70 million to $90 million.
Manitoba Hydro Seeks 3.95% Rate Hike, Another 3.5% Later
Manitoba Hydro, citing a need to update its aging distribution system, applied to the Public Utilities Board for a 3.95% rate increase to go into effect April 1. It also warned that it would need an additional 3.95% hike next year.
President and CEO Scott Thompson said the company needed the additional revenue to pay for upgrades to reduce outages. “No one wants to see energy prices rise, but it does cost money to replace these assets,” he said. “It’s really just replacing aging infrastructure that’s the key driver right now.”
The head of a coalition that has been critical of Manitoba Hydro’s expansion plans said the company’s rate increases may not be sufficient. “The path that they’re on, they’re fooling themselves if they think they can get by with that rate of increase,” said Garland Laliberte, president of the Bipole III Coalition, named for the controversial transmission project the coalition opposes.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved Minnesota Power’s plan to build a 200-mile transmission line from Manitoba to Grand Rapids, Minn.
The 500-kV Great Northern Line will run from the Canadian border near Roseau, Minn., to a substation near Grand Rapids. The total cost is estimated at $560 million to $710 million. MISO has included the line in its transmission expansion report.
The line will be a joint project by Minnesota Power and Manitoba Hydro, and 383 of its 883 MW of transmission capacity will be used to deliver hydro power purchased by Minnesota Power for its customers. Minnesota Power will be the line’s majority owner.
Obama Administration Announces Plan to Cut Methane Emissions
The White House announced that it will implement a combination of regulations aimed at reducing methane emissions from oil and gas drilling, a significant source of greenhouse gases that affect climate change.
The administration said the new regulations aim to cut industrial emissions of methane by 40 to 45% over the next 10 years. Methane, a major component of natural gas, is emitted at gas wells and pipelines.
The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to set requirements for new or modified oil and gas wells and natural gas facilities. The rules are expected to be rolled out in the spring or summer.
FERC Scheduling Hearings on PennEast Pipeline Project
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is hosting a series of five public meetings on the proposed PennEast natural gas pipeline in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
FERC will collect comments that will be used in the final determination on whether the pipeline will be built and what route it will take. The pipeline, financed by operating units of UGI and four major New Jersey gas utilities, is estimated to cost $1 billion. It would deliver Marcellus Shale gas from northeastern Pennsylvania to a pipeline interconnection near Trenton, N.J.
Opponents are already organizing. “The environmental impacts are very significant, very serious,” said Maya van Rossum of the non-profit Delaware Riverkeeper Network. “This environmental impact statement is critically important. We have seen uniformly in pipeline projects FERC not fully considering the impact.”
FERC, DOE Release Final Version of Data Code of Conduct
The final version of the Voluntary Code of Conduct for smart grid data privacy, designed to protect information gathered by smart meters and other technology, was released Friday.
The code protects customer data, including account information and records of energy usage. Under the code, data can be collected and used by service providers, third parties and contracted agents. President Obama held up the code as an example of privacy and cybersecurity during a speech last Monday.
DOE Energy Efficiency Standards Promise $78 Billion in Savings
The Department of Energy released its energy efficiency standards for fluorescent lamps and commercial ice makers, the last two such standards completed in 2014.
The standards for general-service fluorescent lamps alone are expected to save $15 billion in electricity bills and 90 million tons of emissions. Together, the 10 standards approved in 2014 promise energy savings of $78 billion through 2030 and reductions of more than 435 tons of emissions.
Report Claims Offshore Wind Industry Could Provide Double the Energy of Gas, Oil
A report by environmental group Oceana says that Atlantic offshore wind energy industry has the potential to generate twice the number of jobs and twice the amount of energy as offshore drilling for oil or natural gas.
“If we commit ourselves to developing offshore wind resources, it could definitely surpass all that we have with oil and gas,” said Andrew Menaquale, author of the report. “And also, keep in mind, once that oil and gas runs out, it’s gone. Offshore wind, well beyond that, will keep producing energy and will continue to power coastal communities.”
Millstone at Risk of Possible NRC Enforcement for Violation
The struggles of Millstone Power Station to repair a cooling pump has prompted the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to cite the Connecticut facility with a finding of low to moderate safety concern.
The NRC dispatched a team of inspectors to Millstone after problems emerged in 2013 and again in 2014 with a pump used to cool the reactor in the event of failure of both offsite power and backup generators. The findings were not publicized because of security concerns.
Dominion Resources, owner of Millstone, has said that policies and procedures are being changed as a result of the inspection findings.
