WIRES Newsletter – Winter 2022
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Message from our Executive Director |
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If you thought 2021 was a big year for transmission policy, just wait to see what happens in 2022! WIRES was actively engaged through initial and reply comments in the ongoing FERC transmission advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANOPR) proceeding throughout the latter part of 2021. We also closed out the year with the release of a new report by Charles River Associates highlighting the importance of, the need for, and the value of local transmission planning. That report provides a new perspective on how local transmission provides significant benefits and meets unique system needs while also being foundational to the success of the regional planning process and achieving public policy goals.
Now the ball is in FERC’s court, and a proposed rule (or rules) on transmission planning, cost allocation, and interconnection will likely emerge in the coming months. The stakes are high. The issues in the ANOPR are complex, and FERC has not tried to tackle major transmission policy reform in a meaningful way in more than a decade. In addition, proceedings related to transmission incentives and rate of return policy have been pending at FERC for many years. Given the long lead time for getting transmission built and the large amount of capital investment required for transmission projects, durable transmission policies that consistently and emphatically send strong signals to promote needed transmission investment will be crucial.
I have repeatedly said that the country will need a moonshot effort on transmission investment in order to meet the nation’s critical clean energy, electrification, and resilience needs within the coming decade. Look to the policy steps taken in 2022 to see whether regulators are serious about meeting those needs or not.
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WIRES 2022 Officers:
- President: Will Sauer, Managing Director, Federal Regulatory Affairs, Duke Energy
- Vice President: Amanda Conner, Vice President, FERC and RTO Strategy and Policy, American Electric Power
- Secretary: Jodi Moskowitz, Deputy General Counsel & RTO Strategy Officer, PSEG
- Treasurer: Amanda Rumsey, Manager, PJM and Federal Regulatory Policy, PPL Electric Utilities
WIRES 2022 Board of Directors:
- Brian Gemmell, Chief Clean Energy Development Officer, National Grid
- Tom Hestermann, Manager, Transmission Policy, Sunflower Electric Power Corp
- Priti Patel, Vice President & Chief Transmission Officer, Great River Energy
- Nina Plaushin, Vice President, ITC Holdings
- Dave Weaver, Vice President, Transmission Strategy, Exelon
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On Dec, 20, 2021 WIRES published the Value of Local Transmission Planning, a study prepared by Charles River Associates (CRA) that highlights how local transmission planning helps to support a resilient and clean transmission grid. The report finds that local transmission planning is foundational to the success of the regional planning process and to achieving public policy goals, and that local project needs are often unique and distinct from regional system issues and solutions. |
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2022 WIRES Member Meetings |
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We look forward to welcoming in person our members and invited guests to our Spring, Summer and Fall 2022 meetings. Check out the great destinations and save the dates now!
FSM Planning Meeting – Washington, D.C. – Jan. 25-26, 2022 – Remote
Spring Member Meeting – Nashville, TN – April 27-28, 2022
Summer Member Meeting – Newport, RI – July 27-28, 2022
Fall Member Meeting – Washington, D.C. – Oct. 26-27
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Keynote Speaker Announced |
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The WIRES Spring Member Meeting will feature
Commissioner James Danly
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Full Supporting Member – National Grid
National Grid (NYSE: NGG) is an electricity, natural gas, and clean energy delivery company serving more than 20 million people through our networks in New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. National Grid is transforming our electricity and natural gas networks with smarter, cleaner, and more resilient energy solutions to meet the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
National Grid owns and operates nearly 9,000 miles of transmission lines and over 1,100 transmission and distribution substations across its footprint. National Grid is working to build the nation’s most intelligent transmission network by implementing technology that will modernize and optimize the system. In addition, the company is investing more than $5 billion in new transmission infrastructure to enable interconnection of more than 6,200 megawatts of renewable energy to the grid.
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Sharing highlights of the quarter’s earned media below. For a complete list of earned media, visit the WIRES In the News page.
1/13/22 – E&E
12/21/21 – Politico Morning Energy Newsletter
FERC to take next step in transmission rulemaking 'relatively early' in 2022: Glick
12/21/21 – S&P
11/9/21 – E&E News – Climate Wire
In case you missed coverage of our Fall Meeting:
10/28/21 – S&P Global
10/29/21 – E&E
10/29/21 – Power Markets Today
11/1/21 – RTO Insider
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WIRES is an international, non-profit trade association of investor-, publicly-, and cooperatively owned transmission providers, transmission customers, regional grid managers, and equipment and service companies. WIRES promotes investment in electric transmission and progressive state and federal policies that advance energy markets, economic efficiency, and consumer and environmental benefits through development of electric power infrastructure. For more information, visit www.wiresgroup.com.
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