The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a new rule in May that will help future-proof our energy grid, which previously had no federal guidelines regulating plans for its development, Grist reported.
Right now, affordable and clean energy projects are popping up all across the nation. Wind and solar power are great because they're abundant, cheap to generate, and don't create air pollution like coal.
Even though there's a market for all this new electricity, Grist reported there were problems with delivery. Our energy grid just wasn't designed to transport this much power, and it's aging as well.
While some states are making updates to their energy grids, those efforts have been up to individual state governments and regulators. In the past, there was no guarantee that new energy projects would be able to connect to the grid.
The FERC has stepped in with a new set of regulations that would require regional grid operators to plan ahead. Operators will now be responsible for creating plans that detail how their grids will continue serving the region's expected energy needs for the next 20 years, and those plans must be updated every five years.
Not only that, but the rule requires operators to identify areas where they can improve capacity by upgrading the existing infrastructure rather than building new equipment, which should make increasing grid capacity simpler.
This change comes on the heels of another FERC rule update setting deadlines for hooking new energy suppliers up to the grid. Together, these rule changes should lead to rapid growth in our grid capacity to match the rapid development of new energy projects.
"This rule recognizes the reality on the ground, that the factors affecting our grid — they are changing," FERC chair Willie Phillips said at a press conference about the newest decision.
"These reforms are coming at a critical time," Christine Powell, deputy managing attorney for the clean energy program at Earthjustice, told Grist. In response to criticism, she added, "That is not FERC rushing. That is FERC really trying to deliberate and do the right thing."
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