Long-Dated Hedge Plans Create Risks of Their Own
Fuel hedging can be a legitimate risk management tool for regulated utilities. That point does not need to be overstated or relitigated every time hedge plans are reviewed. Fuel prices can be volatile. Ratepayers can be exposed to sudden changes in natural gas, coal,...
Policymakers Should Monitor Near-Term Planning to Increase Cost-Savings for Rate Payers
Summary Public service commissions could create meaningful value for ratepayers served by utilities outside ISO/RTO markets by requiring after-the-fact testimony on how those utilities used, or declined to use, external market resources, month-ahead forward purchases,...
A Central Hub for Generator Interconnection
The United States has reached the point where generator interconnection is no longer a narrow administrative function. It is a national infrastructure bottleneck. Across the country, renewable, storage, gas, hybrid, and load-serving projects are waiting years for studies, restudies, cost estimates, and interconnection agreements. The result is uncertainty for developers, delayed investment, higher costs for consumers, and greater difficulty maintaining reliability as the resource mix changes....