After allegations of management interference led PJM to replace its internal market monitoring unit with an independent monitor in 2008, FERC had an opportunity to prohibit other RTOs from using the internal structure. Because it chose not to do so, the temptation for RTO officials to muzzle their MMUs still...

After allegations of management interference led PJM to replace its internal market monitoring unit with an independent monitor in 2008, FERC had an opportunity to prohibit other RTOs from using the internal structure. Because it chose not to do so, the temptation for RTO officials to muzzle their MMUs still...

By Suzanne Herel and Rich Heidorn Jr. CAMBRIDGE, Md. — Two aides from the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources gave PJM Annual Meeting attendees a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2016 (S.2102), the Senate’s first major energy bill in nearly 10...

Perez-Arriaga © RTO Insider Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Ignacio Perez-Arriaga, said the university’s Utility of the Future study, scheduled for release in October, will have two major messages: “One is we have to reduce the barriers that impede an efficient and effective participation by distributed energy resources ... and all...

By William Opalka NORTH FALMOUTH, Mass. — It all comes back to pipelines. Discussions about New England’s energy future invariably end up focused on the outsized role natural gas plays in the region’s power mix, and how that aligns or runs counter to various policy goals. Also debated is who...

By Rich Heidorn Jr. ALBANY, N.Y. — New York’s proposed Clean Energy Standard was the main topic of discussion at the Independent Power Producers of New York’s annual spring conference last week, with speakers debating the program’s costs, the role of nuclear and Canadian hydropower, and whether the goal of...

Albany, N.Y. — More than 120 people attended the Independent Power Producers of New York’s annual spring conference at the Desmond Hotel and Conference Center. Here are some highlights. Reese © RTO Insider John Reese, IPPNY chairman and senior vice president at Eastern Generation, mused about the conference’s theme, “Bolstering...

NORTH FALMOUTH, Mass. — More than 200 people attended the Northeast Energy and Commerce Association’s 23rd Annual New England Energy Conference last week. Here are some highlights. Roberti © RTO Insider Paul Roberti, a member of the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission, on the suspension of the Northeast Energy Direct...

By William Opalka NORTH FALMOUTH, Mass. — Having spent 45 years running transmission grids, former NYISO CEO Stephen Whitley is an infrastructure guy. Stephen Whitley ©  RTO Insider Whitley, who retired last October after seven years at the ISO, emphasized the importance of wires and pipelines in his keynote speech...

HOUSTON — Almost 500 electric and gas industry participants attended the Gulf Coast Power Association’s 30th annual conference, where low gas prices, environmental rules and new technologies dominated discussion. Here are some of the highlights of the two-day meeting. Texas Legislators Cite Rule Stability King (L) and Lucio (R) ©...