Ever since President Xi Jinping pitched the idea of a “global energy internet” to the United Nations six years ago, China’s been trying to persuade the world to build the high voltage highways that would form its backbone. That plan to wrap the planet in a web of intercontinental, made-in-Beijing power lines has gone pretty much nowhere. Yet the fortunes of so-called supergrids appear to be turning, if not on quite the spectacular, Bond-villain scale Xi first envisaged.

Pritzker, who vowed in the wake of the ComEd scandal that utilities and energy companies would no longer write the state’s energy policy, declined to comment on the specifics of his offer, saying that negotiators were “still working on the bill.”

“Utilities did not write the bill that we have worked on. That is clear,” Pritzker said. “We have done everything that we can to stand up for clean energy principles, to make sure that we’re expanding renewables in the state. I have set out the principles, I have stuck to those principles, and so my hope is that we’ll end up with a good energy bill.”

The panelists agreed that regulatory entities will need to alter their policies to accelerate transmission projects and facilitate their interconnection to the grid.

“(I)t is essential to our democratic system, to our design of government, that we maintain the process as fair in appearance and in practice,” Frost wrote. “At least then the disappointment of the losing party is in having lost, not in being cheated by an unfair process or decision maker. Disappointment is acceptable. Distrust is dangerous.”

WECC-California is at risk of energy emergencies during periods of normal peak summer demand and high risk when above-normal demand is widespread in the west. Prior to summer, the planning reserve margin (which is based on existing and firm capacity) for the California-Mexico assessment area was below the 18.4% Reference Margin Level that WECC calculates is needed for maintaining loss-of-load risk below a 1-day-in-10-year benchmark (a 400 MW shortfall at peak demand). Probabilistic studies indicate 10,185 MWh of energy in the area is expected to go unserved this summer. Over 3 GW of additional resources are expected for this summer with most coming in the form of new solar photovoltaic (PV) generation. These generation plants can provide energy to support peak demand; however, solar PV output falls off rapidly in late afternoon while high demand often remains.

Imports to the area are needed to maintain reliability when demand peaks in the afternoon and to ramp up even further for several hours as internal resources draw down. California will have 675 MW of new battery energy storage systems on-line at the start of the summer that can continue to supply stored energy for periods when needed. Reliance on non-firm imports to cover high demand or low resource output conditions heightens the risk that operators will need to use energy emergency alerts (EEA)—and trigger the shedding of firm load in above-normal heat conditions—to maintain a stable BPS at times. Planned resource additions of 1,300 MW over the summer, including 825 MW of new battery storage, are expected to help mitigate late-summer risks.

Additionally, transmission networks can become stressed when events such as wildfires or wide-area heatwaves cause network congestion. The growing reliance on transfers within the Western Interconnection and falling resource capacity in many adjacent areas increases the risk that extreme events will lead to load interruption.

Operation of the BPS can be impacted in areas where wildfires are active as well as areas where there is heightened risk of wildfire ignition due to weather and ground conditions. Wildfire prevention planning in California and other areas include power shut-off programs in high fire-risk areas. When conditions warrant implementing these plans, power lines (including transmission-level lines) may be preemptively de-energized in high fire-risk areas to prevent wildfire ignitions.

Variable energy resources from wind and solar are critical to meeting peak electricity demand in ERCOT. Periods of low wind generation or higher-than expected thermal outages create a reliability risk during peak load hours. ERCOT appears to be in a weather cycle that may increase the risk of intensifying drought conditions and higher than normal summer temperatures. These weather factors could result in actual summer peak demand exceeding the forecast, which already anticipates record peak demand levels. Thermal outages may increase during severe and prolonged drought conditions due to cooling water supply and temperature issues.

Highest risk for unserved energy at peak demand hour, late afternoon (Risk can
extend for 1–2 hours after peak as solar PV output diminishes. Periods of low-wind, which usually occur 1–2 hours before peak demand, can also result in extended shortfall risk.)

The full report identifies the extent of the possible deficiencies, and Robb told reporters of his own concerns about how the energy transition might be impacting reliability.

"In our hurry to develop a cleaner resource base, reliability and energy adequacy have to be taken into consideration," he said.

The latest reliability assessment is "quite concerning," John Moura, NERC's director of reliability assessment and performance analysis, told reporters.

Summer 2020 and winter 2021 were "difficult to say the least," Moura said, and the latest assessment signals "similar risks" lie ahead.

In the long-term, system operators must do extensive analysis to ensure the addition of variable resources will not negatively impact reliability, he added. "As we look forward, it really just looks more stressful," Moura said, "because of the different resources coming onto the system."

Officials at PJM said they were also reviewing the PUC’s decision and that it “appreciates the commission’s consideration.”

“PJM will commence the appropriate planning studies to determine next steps, including identifying any potential reliability issues due to removal of the project from the Regional Transmission Expansion Plan,” the RTO said in a statement.

The OCA also noted that Transource’s assertions regarding “reliability” as a basis for need refer to a single generation deliverability test performed by PJM in 2018.  Further, the OCA noted PJM neither, performed its full suite of reliability tests to confirm that these reliability violations will result in 2023, nor, performed another generation deliverability test since 2018 which may confirm or refute the results of the 2018 test.  

In its Exception No. 8, Transource asserts that the ALJ’s recommendation to deny Project 9A is based on “faulty findings” without specifying any alleged factual or legal error.  In footnote to its Exception, Transource takes issue with certain specified findings by the ALJ and asserts, as a general matter, that all the ALJ’s findings of fact and conclusions of law should be disregarded to the extent the findings “are inconsistent with [Transource’s] Exceptions, Briefs and Testimony in this proceeding.”  Transource Exc. at 39, fn. 27 (emphasis added). 
 
We note that Transource’s Exception, as stated, fails to conform with Commission Regulations for stating exceptions, and lacks sufficient specificity to enable our review.  See 52 Pa. Code § 5.533 (pertaining to exceptions, requiring that the exceptions be stated with supporting reasons for each exception).  A general assertion that all the ALJ’s factual findings and legal conclusions should be disregarded to the extent they are “inconsistent” with a party’s filings does not state a supporting reason to disregard any of the findings and conclusions.  

... “need” from a PJM planning perspective may or may not be, as Transource asserts, “consistent with the standard for need under Pennsylvania law.”  It is for this Commission, not PJM, to decide whether the PJM planning perspective is, or is not, in line with the Pennsylvania standard for “need” under the Code, Commission Regulations and relevant caselaw.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

Dominion Energy Virginia is seeking public feedback and advice about linking its planned wind farm, 27 miles off the Virginia Beach shore, to the 500 kilovolt backbone of its statewide power grid at the Fentress substation on Centerville Turnpike in Chesapeake.

Is there a "good" way to present a transmission line proposal to the public?  Not if you're approaching the communities with a fully-formed idea of what you're going to build and where you're going to put it.  The only good way to involve a community in a transmission proposal is to approach them with a need before making decisions about what to build and where.  Presenting a community with a problem to be solved and allowing meaningful input into the solution selected is the only way a transmission company can get community buy-in and support for the proposal.  Everything else is nothing more than a battle to push a bad idea the community doesn't want off onto someone else.

The power company has part of the route nailed down: the 27 miles of underwater cable to a landing point at the state military reservation at Camp Pendleton. It also has proposed an underground route through the southernmost reaches of Naval Air Station Oceana, to comply with regulations restricting structures near airfields, which the Navy must still review.

Its research into what’s on the ground, in terms of neighborhoods, wetlands, wildlife and historic resources has led it to six options for the final roughly 15 miles to the Fentress station.

“We can look at maps and desktop it, but it’s not until we talk to people that we’ll really understand these alternatives,” said Kevin Curtis, Dominion’s vice president, electric transmission.

One option for one of these routes would be to bury the lines for a stretch. That could create much more disruption during construction and mean they were costlier to install and repair than running lines overhead but would mean that portion of the lines would not be visible.

Five routes would run along the never-built Southeast Parkway, now an open space corridor through the most densely populated neighborhoods between Oceana and an area southwest of Princess Anne Road, between the Virginia Beach National Golf Course and the Princess Anne Athletic Complex.