Solar Energy Industries Association Calls for Interconnection Reforms to Accelerate Clean Energy Deployment

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has submitted new comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on interconnection reforms that can speed clean energy deployment. SEIA recommends ways to make it faster and easier to connect solar and energy storage projects to the electricity grid, consistent with the President's clean energy goals. Thousands of clean energy project applications have been waiting, in some cases for years, for approval by transmission operators to connect to the grid, hindering companies from deploying solar energy rapidly enough to tackle the climate crisis.

Key Takeaways:

• SEIA's comments aim to clear the interconnection backlog, which has swelled to more than 1,000 gigawatts of clean electricity generation and storage projects.
• The association commends FERC for taking initial steps on critical reforms but emphasizes the need for transmission providers to reduce interconnection delays.
• SEIA recommends new incentives, time limits, and related changes to help clear the interconnection backlog.
• The association calls for transmission providers to supply more upfront information about grid conditions to enable developers to make more efficient project siting decisions.
• SEIA also stresses the importance of efficiency and supports the Commission's proposals to strengthen processes that enable developers to add an energy storage component to existing projects.
• The association urges FERC to drop its proposal for steep withdrawal penalties, citing concerns that it could incentivize less viable projects to stay in the interconnection queue.

Statistics:

• The interconnection backlog has swelled to more than 1,000 gigawatts of clean electricity generation and storage projects.
• Thousands of clean energy project applications have been waiting, in some cases for years, for approval by transmission operators to connect to the grid.
• SEIA estimates that these challenges will only compound over the next decade as project developers aim to take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act.
• The association predicts that over the next decade, interconnection reform will continue to be a top priority for SEIA as it looks to add hundreds of gigawatts of clean energy to the grid.

Sources:

• Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) (press release)
• Solar Energy Industries Association (2017) (About SEIA)
• Contify.com (Copyright 2017)