Texas blackouts may bring winterization mandates from FERC, shape federal spending priorities

摘要

Policy activity on grid resilience has seen an uptick in the month since an Arctic blast left millions of Texans without power for days, and the federal policy response could bring new requirements for generator winterization and inform stimulus and infrastructure spending priorities, a Washington insider said March 24. The federal response starts with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Jeff Dennis, managing director and general counsel for Advanced Energy Economy, said during an AEE-hosted webinar on the policy fallout from the Texas blackouts. While the Electric Reliability Council of Texas' power markets are not subject to FERC's jurisdiction, the commission maintains authority over the reliable operation of the bulk electric system. As such, FERC can order the North American Electric Reliability Corp. to develop mandatory reliability standards.