Utility commissioners in Montana and Wyoming are urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to act on a grid resilience proceeding the agency initiated 20 months ago when it unanimously rejected a proposal designed to prop up at-risk coal-fired and nuclear units.
In rejecting a U.S. Department of Energy proposal that would have effectively subsidized those uneconomic plants, five members of the commission voted in January 2018 to open a separate docket (FERC docket AD18-7) examining the resiliency of the nation's bulk power system. But FERC has not displayed outward signs of progress in that proceeding since it moved in March 2018 to extend the deadline for stakeholders to weigh in, Montana and Wyoming regulators noted in separate letters posted online Sept. 18 and Sept. 19, respectively.
"While we appreciate the commission's efforts to examine challenges related to the reliability and resilience of the bulk power system, we are not aware of any further action, other than soliciting comments, the commission has taken," said Brad Johnson, chairman of the Montana Department of Public Service Regulation.
In his letter, Johnson requested that FERC "make a decision and issue an order in an expeditious manner." Meanwhile, Kara Fornstrom, chairwoman of the Wyoming Public Service Commission, in her own letter urged FERC to "expedite consideration" of the proceeding.
Both regulators noted that about 67,000 MW of coal-fired generating capacity in grid operators' footprints will have retired by the end of 2020. Moreover, 20% of nuclear units will have retired or announced plans to retire by 2030, totaling more than 17,000 MW of capacity, they observed.
The commissioners represent states where lawmakers have sought to boost coal-fired generation to varying degrees of success. While Montana lawmakers failed to pass legislation to save the Colstrip coal-fired power plant in that state, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed a bill earlier this year to require investor-owned utilities to first seek buyers for coal-fired power plants they want to close.
During a Sept. 4 event in Washington, D.C., FERC Chairman Neil Chatterjee acknowledged that defining the term "resilience," which he views as a critical first step in the proceeding, has "taken a long time." However, he added that he hoped the commission "will be able to proceed with the docket soon and in short order."
"This isn't something that I think will be polarizing or partisan or not fuel-neutral, but I think also there's merit to defining what grid resilience is," Chatterjee said. "Once we make that determination on what constitutes grid resilience, we then have to evaluate is there, in fact, any sort of threat, short-term or long-term, to the resilience of the grid. And if we determine if there is or isn't, what steps to take from there."
