The FERC approved a final rule that will enable distributed energy resource (DER) aggregators to compete in organized wholesale electricity markets. DERs are located on the distribution system or behind the customer meter and include electric storage resources, intermittent generation, distributed generation, demand response, energy efficiency, thermal storage, and electric vehicles and their charging equipment. Aggregators will now be able to aggregate multiple small DERs as a single resource to compete in the markets, smoothing the way for many more of such resources to enter the wholesale market. Continue Reading
UK: new “world-leading” deforestation and ecosystem supply chain law
The UK Government recently announced that it is developing legislation that would make it illegal for large businesses operating in the UK to use certain commodities that have not been produced in line with local laws, and require in-scope companies to conduct due diligence to ensure that their supply chains are free from illegal deforestation and ecosystem change. A failure to comply could result in significant fines (the precise levels of fines are yet to be determined). Continue Reading
EPA Issues Emergency Approval for First-Ever Residual Antiviral Product
For the first time ever, EPA has approved a pesticide making residual antiviral claims under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The approval may be a significant boon in the fight against COVID-19, but it also raises several key questions about EPA’s broader approach to combatting the novel coronavirus. Continue Reading
Electric Storage May Be Treated as Transmission
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved tariff terms for a Regional Transmission Operator (RTO) to treat electric storage resources as transmission facilities under certain circumstances. Previously, FERC approved only one case-specific proposal to treat storage as transmission. Treatment as a transmission facility provides additional deployment opportunities for storage resources and allows cost recovery through cost-of service transmission rates instead of relying entirely on energy market revenues. Commissioner James Danly, however, dissented from the tariff order, preferring to maintain the bright line between generation and transmission previously established by FERC. Continue Reading
DOE Extends LNG Export Terms
The Department of Energy (DOE) adopted a new policy which extends the standard term for authorizations to export natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the U.S. lower-48 states to countries without a free trade agreement with the U.S. to December 31, 2050. The standard term had been 20 years. The new standard term will be allowed for current and future export authorizations. Continue Reading
The Green Deal at the Border: Public Consultation on the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism Launched
Last week, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the possible adoption of a new EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (“CBAM”). This consultation is yet another of the initiatives that the Commission is taking to roll out its ambitious European Green Deal (for a recent overview webinar see here). Manufacturers in virtually all industrial sectors and their trade associations would be wise to assess the potential impact of the CBAM on the products they market in Europe and to consider participating in the public consultation and comment process. Continue Reading
New York Doubles Down On Offshore Wind and Sets Renewables RFP Record
In a move that further bolsters the state of New York’s status as a trailblazer in America’s energy transformation, on July 21, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the largest combined renewable energy solicitations in U.S. history. New York is seeking up to 4,000 megawatts (MW) of offshore wind and onshore renewable energy capacity to help meet the resource goals established under its 2016 Clean Energy Standard and its 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The solicitations also contemplate a combined $400 million in public and private funding to upgrade the state’s port infrastructure in order to accommodate the development of the new offshore wind facilities. New York’s solicitations not only present an unprecedented market opportunity for offshore wind and other renewable developers, but also for businesses seeking to provide key construction and operations and maintenance products and services to the offshore wind industry. Continue Reading
FERC Revises PURPA Rules
The FERC recently issued a final rule (Order No. 872) revising its regulations implementing the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA), which encourages the development of certain renewable and cogeneration facilities. PURPA, and FERC’s rules implementing it, establish benefits to those facilities by obligating electric utilities to purchase electricity from them. As discussed in a prior post to this blog, FERC considered reforming its regulations due in part to changes in the electric power industry over the last several decades.
CEQ Finalizes NEPA Rule Updating Regulations
On July 17, 2020, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a Final Rule updating regulations to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Final Rule closely tracks the Proposed Rule released in January 2020. The final rule makes a number of notable changes to existing NEPA regulations. Continue Reading
Manufacturers and Marketers Beware: The EU Adopts New Restrictions on Products Containing PFOAs
Since July 4, 2020 the manufacture, marketing and use of perfluorooctanoic acid (“PFOA”), its salts and PFOA-related compounds (collectively, “PFOAs”), and products containing them, is significantly restricted in the European Economic Area (“EU/EEA”). The restrictions were introduced by a Commission Delegated Regulation amending Annex I to the EU POPs Regulation, and are intended to implement a decision of the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention that was held from April 29 to May 10, 2019. Continue Reading
