Policy Review

Examination of recent policy and regulatory initiatives

• US 2018 Budget Proposal: Government considers sale of BPA’s assets

  June 9, 2017
  The US government’s 2018 budget proposal has caused quite a furor in the country’s energy sector. While proposing to scale back federal funding for energy research with massive cuts in the support to the Department of Energy (DoE), the new budget calls for raising revenues by selling off publicly owned energy infrastructure and resources.

• FERC’s Large Generators Interconnection Rules: Improving certainty

  May 10, 2017
  The timing of the interconnection of a generation facility to the grid is critical for any generator. Lengthy, non-transparent and discriminatory interconnection processes hinder the development of new generation as well as derail the advancement of new technologies.

• Upturning Brazil’s Economy: Private sector set to play a bigger role [free access]

  April 10, 2017
  Brazil is currently facing its longest recession since the 1930s. The economic recession, which started in 2014, and the 2016 political crisis, which resulted in the impeachment of its then President Dilma Rousseff, has led the country to an economic collapse.

• Nigeria’s New Financing Plans: Allows private contractors to build grid projects

  March 14, 2017
  Nigeria’s electricity transmission infrastructure is grossly inadequate and is one of the key factors responsible for stranded generation capacity, which has become a characteristic of the country’s electricity grid.

• New Proposal on Risk Preparedness: For a resilient single EU electricity market

  February 17, 2017
  In its aim to create a well functioning single electricity market in the European Union (EU), the European Commission (EC) published a proposal on the regulation of ‘risk-preparedness’ in the electricity sector on November 30, 2016.

• FERC's New Rule: To boost electric storage and DER participation in wholesale markets [free access]

  January 12, 2017
  Federal-level policy and regulatory support to energy storage and distributed energy resources (DER) is greater than ever before in the US. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has been making efforts to provide a level playing field for emerging technologies.

• EU-Africa Renewable Electricity Trade: Joint declaration signed for SET Roadmap

  December 9, 2016
  In November 2016, four European countries—Germany, France, Spain and Portugal—and Morocco signed a joint declaration to establish a roadmap for facilitating sustainable renewable electricity trade between Northern Africa and the European internal energy market.

• Siting Process for Transmission Lines' Modified: DOE issues new rule

  November 7, 2016
  The US Department of Energy (DOE) on September 28, 2016 issued a final rule to establish a pre-application process to simplify the siting of certain transmission projects.

• Structural Reforms in Europe: Update on unbundling of TSOs [free access]

  October 14, 2016
  Europe is among the leading regions in undertaking widespread reforms and restructuring efforts in the energy sector to promote competition and investments.

• Boosting Competition in UK: Consultations for CATO selection process underway

  September 9, 2016
  UK is considering introducing competition in onshore power transmission, a responsibility currently held by three incumbent transmission operators (TOs)—National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) in England and Wales, SP Transmission in the south of Scotland, and SHE Transmission in the north of Scotland.

• US-Canada Electric Grid Strategy: Working together to improve grid resilience

  August 12, 2016
  Recent years have witnessed an increase in incidents of cyber and security attacks on the US' high voltage grid. These attacks pose a significant risk to the security and proper functioning of the country's grid.

• New Zealand's Tariff Methodology: Aims to provide correct investment signals

  July 14, 2016
  In May 2016, New Zealand's Electricity Authority (EA) released a consultation paper aimed at changing the way Transpower, the country's sole electricity transmission developer and operator, charge its customers for providing transmission services.

• Expanding Role of Energy Storage in Wholesale Markets: FERC to review rules

  June 9, 2016
  Over the last five years, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued several rules—Orders 755, 784 and 792—that have played an important role in the expansion of the energy storage industry in the United States (US).

• US Senate Energy Bill: Aiming at broad scale modernisation

  May 9, 2016
  The landscape of the energy sector in the United States (US) has changed significantly in the past decade given the increased focus on renewable generation and energy conservation as well as the increased domestic production of oil and gas.

• Germany's Underground Cable Law: New rules aims to accelerate grid expansion [free access]

  April 6, 2016
  In December 2015, the Bundesrat (the second chamber of Germany's federal legislative) passed a Bill approving amendments to various laws concerning power line extension in the country.

• Brazil Issues New Transmission Auction Rules: Aiming to attract more investments

  March 10, 2016
  Recently, Brazil's energy regulator Agencia Nacional de Energia Eletrica (ANEEL) approved new bidding rules for the upcoming transmission auction to be held in April 2016.

• EC Pushes For European Energy Union: 10% interconnectivity resolution passed [free access]

  February 3, 2016
  The European Commission, along with the Members of the European Parliament, is making a concerted effort to create an energy union and internal market in the continent.

• Chile's Draft Transmission Law: Proposals to merge Chile's two main grids

  January 11, 2016
  Chile is currently debating a draft bill that seeks to restructure and reorganise the country's electricity transmission sector.

• Italy's Grid Incentives Framework: Consults on new mechanism for returns

  December 8, 2015
  2015 has been a busy year for the Italian electricity, gas and water services regulator, Autorità per l'energia elettrica il gas e il sistema idrico (AEEGSI), which has been reviewing and consulting on developing a more rigorous incentive mechanism to guide investments in the energy networks and decide revenues for the operators.

• Indian Power Grid Reforms: Recently proposed regulatory moves

  November 10, 2015
  With the rising power demand and increasing share of renewable energy in the total energy mix, India is developing new strategies to strengthen its power transmission network.