The Federal Electric Regulatory Commission (FERC) has shifted electric transmission grid requirements for long-term regional planning to optimize grid development in the face of future uncertainty while mitigating cost to the public. FERC Order No. 1920, which goes into effect on August 12, 2024*, requires multiple future grid plan scenarios, as well as cost-allocation, inter-connection needs, technology advancements and transparency between regional and local transmission planners and stakeholders. Wetland Studies and Solutions, Inc. (WSSI) provides this breakdown of the changes that are intended to improve grid reliability. We work with energy providers to ensure that they have the environmental information and permit mechanisms in place to move forward confidently to deliver grid solutions that benefit the customers who rely on them.
FERC’s Vision: More Dynamic Grid Planning
“Our country is facing an unprecedented surge in demand for affordable electricity while confronting extreme weather threats to the reliability of our grid and trying to stay one step ahead of the massive technological changes we are seeing in our society. Our nation needs a new foundation to get badly needed new transmission planned, paid for and built. With this new rule, that starts today.” – FERC Chairman Willie Phillips in FERC’s Summer Assessment for 2024
Grid system assets must be capable of performing well against a broadening set of expectations, driven by rapidly changing demands and newly recognized threats to the entire grid system as currently operated and managed. The aging electrical grid system we have today presents maintenance and replacement challenges as-is, and it is further challenged by rapidly increasing electrical power demands, evolving power generation sources, and extreme weather events.
Grids developed and maintained at the regional level can address regional needs, but a nationwide unified approach, the goal of FERC’s order, can better ensure continuity in service while keeping maintenance prices down and reducing system vulnerabilities.
This order builds on FERC’s 2011 Order No. 1000, which created incentives for cost-effective and innovative projects to shake up and improve approaches to electrical grid stewardship.
No More “Business As Usual”
FERC’s order demands providers conduct long-term regional transmission planning as an integral part of their existing planning and cost allocation processes.
Going forward, grid planning must occur on a broader scale, demonstrating system reliability will be maintained while keeping costs to consumers at an acceptable level in at least three different long-term development scenarios with a 20-year planning horizon. Providers must update those plans at least once every five years.
Order 1920 mandates transmission operators address metrics including local, state and federal laws and regulations regarding decarbonization; resource mix and demands; and federally recognized tribal, state and local policy goals that affect long-term transmission needs. It also requires enhanced transparency in the planning process within and between system planners via increased local stakeholder engagement, public notifications, and planning updates.
Now What?
The impacts of Order No. 1920 will be evident over time as transmission operators implement it on a project-by-project basis. Immediate impact will come through projects on the ground as providers address current and near-term system needs in the new lens of this mandate.
WSSI Can Help
WSSI works with energy providers to ensure long-term viability in project planning and execution. Our understanding of natural resources and the regulatory environment along with our experience in helping our energy clients manage project challenges makes us able to consistently deliver data and strategies that help our clients meet their goals.
WSSI provides transmission operators with the full toolbox of environmental knowledge needed to implement Order No. 1920: relevant, region-specific data; regulatory expertise; situational awareness; and regionally-appropriate environmental design solutions. Contact us to discuss how we can apply this expertise to further your project goals.
* FERC announced the order on May 13, 2024. It was published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2024, and goes into effect on August 12, 2024.
Resources
- Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation, Order No.1920 (Federal Register, June 11, 2024)
- Fact Sheet | Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation (FERC, May 13, 2024)
- FERC’s Summer Assessment for 2024 (FERC, May 24, 2024)