Electric Co-op Today

A “safety-valve” approach may be necessary to bridge the gap between near-term grid reliability requirements and the Environmental Protection Agency’s long-term environmental goals, an electric cooperative executive told federal regulators.

Eric Baker

This option would allow coal-based generating units needed to maintain reliability an exemption from EPA regulations until an appropriate reliability solution is implemented,  Eric Baker, Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative president and CEO, said Nov. 30, at a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission technical conference on the reliability implications of EPA’s regulations.

The Cadillac, Mich.-based G&T executive noted that “The safety valve concept should not be a vehicle to ‘kick the can’ down the road, particularly with respect to coal plant environmental retrofits.”

Regional grid operators, responsible for day-to-day system operations in some areas, may be in the best position in those areas to evaluate reliability and determine the safety valve, Baker said.

NRECA’s favored approach for complying with the hazardous air pollutant regulations is to have the president issue an executive order delegating authority to grant one or two more extensions of time, for up to two years each.

The delegations, authorized under the Clean Air Act, would be based on the finding that technology to implement the EPA standards is not available, and it is in the national security interest to grant them.

Administrative or consent orders would not suffice, the association said, because they would leave uncertainty for co-ops installing additional pollution control equipment, and create the likelihood of lawsuits challenging the grants of additional time.

EPA Assistant Administrator Gina McCarthy contended that the agency’s regulations would have only a modest impact on overall reliability. She acknowledged, however, the possibility of “localized” issues.

But industry representatives called for time and flexibility to meet EPA’s rules.

The combined effects of the regulations on planning reserve margins “may result in reliability concerns,” cautioned Gerry Cauley, president and CEO of the North American Electric Reliability Corp.

Accelerated generating plant retirements are only part of the concern. Some existing units may be unavailable due to scheduled outages during the transition period when new resources are being constructed, according to Cauley.

Cauley added that  reliability exceptions for individual units may be needed to preserve bulk power reliability and support resource transition.

FERC Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur indicated that she and Commissioner Philip Moeller are talking with state regulators about conducting regular discussions about the impacts of federal environmental regulations on grid reliability.

Tags: Electric Grid, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, North American Electric Reliability Corporation, Reliability Standards