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					</table><p>The U.S. Department of Energy (<a href="https://www.energy.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOE</a>) Solar Energy Technologies Office and Wind Energy Technologies Office have jointly issued a request for information to gather input on a draft Transmission System Interconnection Roadmap prepared by the Interconnection Innovation e-Xchange (i2X) to improve interconnection practices for the bulk power system.</p>
<p>Feedback on the draft roadmap has been sought from grid operators, utilities, state and local governments, tribal governments and tribal utilities, clean energy developers, energy justice organizations, nonprofits, trade associations, and other i2X stakeholders by November 22, 2023.</p>
<p>The request for feedback comes in the context of the rapid transformation of the electric grid in the U.S., with an increasing number of interconnection requests for clean energy resources straining the existing processes for grid interconnection. Queue times to interconnect clean energy projects have been rising, delaying the deployment of new resources to the transmission grid.</p>
<p>At the end of 2022, over 2 TW of generation and storage projects in the U.S. were <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/eases-connecting-renewable-projects-grid" target="_blank" rel="noopener">waiting</a> in line for interconnection. This equates to as much electricity generation capacity as all the power projects operating in the country.</p>
<p>To address these challenges, the DOE launched the i2X program last June to enable simpler, faster, and fairer interconnection of clean energy resources while enhancing the reliability, resilience, and security of the electric grid.</p>
<p>The i2X roadmap emphasizes the importance of comprehensive interconnection standards, drawing attention to the current lack of detailed generator interconnection requirements and recommending measures to maintain a reliable grid to promote economic efficiency.</p>
<p>The draft is intended to serve as a stakeholder-driven practical guide for implementing near and long-term solutions to interconnect clean energy sources and clear the existing backlog of solar, wind, and battery projects seeking to be built.</p>
<p>The proposed measures aim to attract investments in renewable energy projects and address the challenges posed by a significant increase in interconnection requests, which have tripled to quintupled, from 500-1,000 annually (2000-2010) to 2,500-3,000 per year, driven by favorable policy and economic factors.</p>
<p>The roadmap is premised on four critical goals:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Data Access and Transparency:</strong> Improving data quality and accessibility and efficient queue management to enhance the appeal of the renewable energy sector to investors.</li>
<li><strong>Process and Timing:</strong> Target backlog reduction and workforce strengthening through a first-ready-first-served cluster study process, firm deadlines, and penalties for grid operators if they fail to complete their interconnection studies on time.</li>
<li><strong>Economic Efficiency:</strong> Focusing on cost allocation and coordination enhancements to address cost allocation complexities in participant-funded transmission projects, making the renewable energy sector more appealing to investors.</li>
<li><strong>Reliable Grid:</strong> Enhancing grid reliability through improved models and standards, focusing on improving modeling accuracy and developing screening tools to ensure a reliable electricity supply and increase investment prospects in renewable energy.</li>
</ul>
<p>The roadmap prioritizes advanced information technologies for streamlined data management and reporting. It also encourages adaptable interconnection processes, including fast tracks, to maximize limited transmission capacity and expedite connections.</p>
<p>Enhanced stakeholder coordination is a core focus, with equity-driven initiatives supporting infrastructure upgrades in underserved areas. Addressing market design, regulation, and open access principles ensures fairness and efficiency.</p>
<p>Current interconnection standards, primarily from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (<a href="https://www.ferc.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FERC</a>), lack the needed detail.</p>
<p>During the roadmap&#8217;s development, FERC issued Order 2023 for interconnection reform, which this roadmap incorporates alongside additional ideas for long-term process evolution, fostering industry-wide discourse and maintaining relevance for non-FERC transmission providers.</p>
<p>Last month, the DOE <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-strengthen-power-grid-integrate-clean-energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allocated</a> $3.46 billion for 58 projects spanning 44 states to bolster the national grid, with a total investment exceeding $8 billion, targeting 35 GW of renewable energy capacity and 400 microgrids, enhancing resilience, upholding Justice40 goals, and ensuring grid reliability and affordability.</p>
<p>FERC has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/eases-connecting-renewable-projects-grid" target="_blank" rel="noopener">streamlined</a> U.S. renewable energy project interconnections to reduce queues and improve efficiency, which is crucial given over 2 TW of projects are awaiting connection. This includes a first-ready-first-served cluster study process, firm deadlines, penalties, and advanced transmission tech adoption to enhance grid reliability and transparency.</p>
<p>In India, plans are afoot to invest ₹2.8 trillion ($34.2 billion) by 2030 in setting up an interstate transmission network to <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/india-invest-%e2%82%b92-8-trillion-evacuate-renewable-energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">evacuate</a> renewable energy, according to K Sreekant, Chairman and Managing Director of government-owned Powergrid Corporation of India.</p>


US DOE Seeks Inputs on Transmission System Interconnection Draft Roadmap


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					</table><p>In a bid to cut down the long queues of renewable energy projects awaiting interconnection to the nation’s transmission grid, the United States Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (<a href="https://www.ferc.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FERC</a>) has taken steps to streamline the process.</p>
<p>The measures are expected to ease the process for transmission providers, ensure better timing and cost certainty to interconnection customers, and prevent undue discrimination against new power generation sources.</p>
<p>The reforms are significant for the U.S. energy sector, given that at the end of 2022, over 2 TW of generation and storage were waiting in line for interconnection. This equates to as much electricity generation capacity as all the power projects currently operating in the country. Projects have had to wait up to five years on average to connect to the grid. Renewable energy projects, especially, have had to bear the brunt of interconnection delays.</p>
<p>According to the National Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, solar, storage, and wind projects <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/renewables-awaiting-grid-connection-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accounted</a> for 95% of the 2 TW of all proposed generation capacity awaiting connection to the grid in the U.S. at the end of 2022. The average time of queued renewable projects seeking interconnection increased by over 40% in 2022.</p>
<p>The reforms include the following:</p>
<ul>
<li>Institution of a first-ready-first-served cluster study process, with increased financial commitments for interconnection customers, to improve the efficiency of the interconnection process and minimize delays</li>
<li>Imposition of firm deadlines and penalties of up to $2,500 per day for grid operators if they fail to complete their interconnection studies on time</li>
<li>Incorporation of technological advancements into the interconnection process, including consideration of advanced transmission technologies in the interconnection study process. For example, transmission providers would have to allow more than one generating facility to co-locate on a shared site behind a single point of interconnection and share a single interconnection request</li>
<li>Updation of modeling and performance requirements for inverter-based resources to ensure continued system reliability</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Existing Challenges</strong></p>
<p>The growth of new resources seeking to interconnect to the transmission system, coupled with the existing serial first-come, first-served interconnection study process, has created large interconnection queue backlogs and uncertainty regarding the cost and timing of interconnecting to the transmission system, increasing costs for consumers.</p>
<p>Consequently, new generating facilities cannot reach commercial operation in an efficient and timely manner.</p>
<p>The new rules, which came out of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued in June 2022, will take effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Compliance filings are due 90 days after publication in the Federal Register.</p>
<p>The reforms require all public utilities to adopt revised pro forma generator interconnection procedures and agreements to ensure that customers can interconnect to the transmission system in a reliable, efficient, transparent, and timely manner.</p>
<p>“This new rule will enable America’s vast power generation resources to connect to the grid in a reliable, efficient, transparent, and timely manner, and in doing so, help provide more reliable, resilient, and affordable electricity for all consumers,” FERC Chairman Willie Phillips said. “This is a watershed moment for our nation’s transmission grid.”</p>
<p>The FERC is also working on addressing the key issues of regional transmission planning and cost allocation. “We need to take a longer-term, forward-looking approach to planning for essential transmission facilities and to allocate the costs of those facilities in a just and reasonable manner while enhancing the reliability and resilience of the grid,” Phillips said.</p>
<p>The long interconnection queues have come at a huge cost, with congestion costs in regional transmission organization regions, excluding the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) region, <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-power-congestion-costs-20-8-billion-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">amounting</a> to a staggering $12.1 billion in 2022. Extrapolating these figures to include CAISO and the rest of the U.S. brings the total congestion costs to $20.8 billion, according to a report by power sector consulting firm Grid Strategies.</p>
<p>The interconnection reforms will go a long way in complementing the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, under which $369 billion would be <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/inflation-reduction-act-faster-transition-clean-energy-u-s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spent</a> to ensure energy security in the U.S. and achieve climate goals.</p>


FERC Eases Process for Connecting Renewable Energy Projects to the Grid

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