Federal Briefs - news items from federal agencies that impact companies doing business in PJM. Today's stories include news from the DOE and FERC.

Coal boosters who hope carbon capture technology will ensure the fuel’s future will find little support in a report for planners in the Eastern Interconnection.

The PJM MRC approved agenda items 2, 4 and 5 unanimously Thursday, August 29, 2013. See story for issue, reason for changes, and impact.

State briefs from around PJM's footprint. Included this week are Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.

PJM may seek to lower the price cap on emergency demand response as a result of their review of the July 14-19 heat wave.

Members will consider rules allowing batteries, flywheels and other advanced energy storage technologies to participate in the PJM capacity market.

Constraints that can be quickly and cheaply resolved would be included in the Regional Transmission Expansion Plan (RTEP) under a proposal the MRC endorsed Thursday after a lengthy discussion. The proposal was approved over the objections of five members, who said it could result in wasteful spending.

Panda Power Funds, a Texas-based private equity fund, last week announced two big investments in PJM, proposing a plant in MD and purchasing rights to a planned generator in PA.

The PJM Market Monitor's mid-year report detailed rebounding energy prices and coal generation in the first half of 2013 as natural gas costs increased from record lows.