ACORE Submits Comments to FERC on Proposed Interconnection Reforms

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) submitted comments today in response to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) on Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements. ACORE explains in the comments that while the organization generally supports the Commission’s proposal, these reforms will not be sufficient without a fundamental expansion of the transmission system and comprehensive transmission planning that incorporates vital interconnection needs. The comments propose several recommended improvements, including that the Commission establish uniform, transparent, and reasonable interconnection study assumptions and criteria that allow for reproducible study results, along with adopting best practices, including the use of automation in the study processes.

“ACORE greatly appreciates these improvements in the interconnection processes and agreements,” said ACORE’s Director of Electricity Policy Elise Caplan. “We further recommend that the Commission continue to move forward on establishment of a more comprehensive transmission planning process and initiate a rulemaking to improve the cost allocation for interconnection network upgrades.”

“As we heard repeatedly today at the ACORE Grid Forum, our current interconnection process is holding back America’s renewable transition,” added ACORE President and CEO Gregory Wetstone. “We have reliable, low-cost clean energy projects that could be enhancing grid reliability and helping address our climate imperative but are instead waiting in interconnection queues nationwide. We applaud FERC for their efforts to begin to tackle this challenge, and hope to see them continue to build on this proposal with the improvements outlined in our comments.”