Transmission expansion is only part of the remedy for system constraints.
Rich Miller is director, energy markets policy group, for Con Edison.
Building new transmission across the entire United States is a concept that continues to dominate discussions about the future of electric power. Many believe large amounts of power need to be moved across the country, or that transmission is needed to relieve congested areas, or to make sure enough renewable power is built.
Con Edison supports building new transmission when needed and the increased use of clean energy. Con Edison principally operates in a restructured State—New York—and has divested most of its generation.1 We believe the best way to achieve clean energy is to set an economy-wide price on greenhouse-gas emissions. We also believe that the discussion about transmission must be based on sound evidence so that the most economically efficient solution is reached.
Economic Solutions
Consumers shouldn’t be exposed to unnecessary and unfair costs to build transmission, especially if it isn’t needed for reliability. For example, one of the key features of the recent FERC NOPR on transmission planning and cost allocation is the proposal to consider transmission and non-transmission solutions, a feature that has existed for several years as part of the planning process in New York.2