Latest News
EPSA Supports FERC in Connecticut Appeal on Jurisdiction for Regional Resource Adequacy Requirements
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) today filed a brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit supporting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in defending its authority to enact rules and regulations that affect rates and charges for wholesale sales of electricity. EPSA's brief opposes appeals brought by the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC), alleging that FERC exceeded its jurisdiction when it accepted the Installed Capacity Requirement (ICR) for various years and modifications to the methodology for calculating ICR proposed by ISO New England. Installed Capacity Requirement is the minimum level of capacity required to meet the reliability requirements defined for the New England Control Area.
John E. Shelk, president and CEO of EPSA said, "It is an inescapable fact that the electric grid in New England is regional in nature. Thus, ISO-New England, subject to FERC review, is best poised to set reserve margins for its region, to serve as a neutral entity focused on market-wide, regional concerns, and to make the careful determinations as to what capacity and reliability requirements are appropriate for New England as a whole."
In each of its appeals, the DPUC argues that a state's regulatory jurisdiction is being infringed upon, citing the Federal Power Act and its reservation of state authority over generation facilities. However, "The Federal Power Act granted the Commission authority not only to regulate wholesale rates, but also over any rule, regulation, practice or contract 'affecting' wholesale rates," EPSA points out in its brief.
EPSA says, "It is precisely because the ICR has a direct effect on wholesale rates, and precisely because utilities operating in New England long ago agreed, with the support of Connecticut and other New England states, to pool their resources on a regional basis as part of a regional organization, that the regulation of the appropriate ICR can and should be regulated by the federal agency." EPSA states, "There is nothing 'distinctively local' about regulating the reliability of the interstate transmission system or ensuring that wholesale rates are just and reasonable by imposing requirements on a pool of utilities within a multi-state region."
Although the Commission approves the ICR for ISO-New England, decisions regarding how to comply with capacity obligations remain with the individual state. Therefore, "Although the level of the ICR may result in more or less generation facilities being constructed as wholesale customers satisfy their capacity obligations, that is merely an incidental effect. Nothing in the Commission's orders requires or compels that result," EPSA said.
EPSA Supports FERC Jurisdiction in Connecticut DC Circuit Court Appeal (No. 07-1375)
CONTACT: JOHN SHELK
(202) 349-0154or 703-472-8660
EPSA is the national trade association representing competitive power suppliers, including generators and marketers. These suppliers, who account for nearly 40 percent of the installed generating capacity in the United States, provide reliable and competitively priced electricity from environmentally responsible facilities serving global power markets. EPSA seeks to bring the benefits of competition to all power customers.