In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Will Gorman, a research scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, about the interconnection queue. The interconnection queue is the waiting list for developers that hope to connect power plants to the electric grid; regulators must first study the potential effects of connecting a plant to the grid before moving forward with a project. Gorman discusses the reasons for recent growth in queue wait times, the costs that are associated with connecting a new power plant to the grid, a new federal regulation that aims to improve the interconnection queue, and additional reforms that could speed up the process of connecting new power plants to the grid.

References and recommendations:

“Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements” from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; https://www.ferc.gov/news-events/news/fact-sheet-improvements-generator-interconnection-procedures-and-agreements

“Queued Up: Characteristics of Power Plants Seeking Transmission Interconnection” by Joe Rand, Will Gorman, Seongeun Jeong, Fredrich Kahrl, Julie Mulvaney Kemp, Ben Paulos, Dana Robson, Jo Seel, and Ryan Wiser; https://emp.lbl.gov/queues

“Generator Interconnection Costs to the Transmission System” by Jo Seel, Will Gorman, Fredrich Kahrl, Julie Mulvaney Kemp, Dev Millstein, Joe Rand, and Ryan Wiser; https://emp.lbl.gov/interconnection_costs

“Beyond FERC Order 2023: Considerations on Deep Interconnection Reform” by Tyler H. Norris; https://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/publications/beyond-ferc-order-2023-considerations-deep-interconnection-reform

“Energy at the Movies” television program; http://energyatthemovies.com/about/

“The Art of Energy Efficiency” by Arthur H. Rosenfeld; https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.energy.24.1.33

The “Parable” book series by Octavia E. Butler; https://www.octaviabutler.com/parableseries

Cutting the Queue and Emissions in the US Power Sector, with Will Gorman

In this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes talks with Ben Hertz-Shargel, global head of a research team at Wood Mackenzie that investigates the connections between energy consumers and the electric grid, about how the increasing energy demand from artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping electricity markets in the United States. In a recent report for Wood Mackenzie, Hertz-Shargel investigates large-load tariffs—a new utility rate plan for large customers, like data centers, whose exceptionally high electricity demand necessitates constructing additional infrastructure. Hertz-Shargel outlines ongoing uncertainty around whether the existing electricity market can accommodate data centers, along with potential avenues for data centers to promote clean energy development and protect individual energy consumers and households from undue electricity price increases.

References and recommendations:

“Large load tariffs: a looming challenge for utilities” by Ben Hertz-Shargel; https://www.woodmac.com/news/opinion/large-load-tariffs-a-looming-challenge-for-utilities/

“Large load tariffs have a problem. Clean transition tariffs are the solution.” by Ben Hertz-Shargel; https://www.utilitydive.com/news/large-load-clean-transition-tariffs-wood-mackenzie/749722/

“Extracting Profits from the Public: How Utility Ratepayers Are Paying for Big Tech’s Power” by Ari Peskoe and Eliza Martin; https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/extracting-profits-from-the-public-how-utility-ratepayers-are-paying-for-big-techs-power/

Large Loads: Who Bears the Costs of Meeting a Growing Demand for Electricity, with Ben Hertz-Shargel

Resources Radio is a weekly podcast by Resources for the Future. Each week we talk to leading experts about climate change, electricity, ecosystems, and more, making the latest research accessible to everyone.

New tracks tagged #electricity infrastructure