FERC
Mark Christie is a Commissioner for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He is the former Chair of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, and also former president of the Organization of PJM States.
Electric transmission planning has garnered lots of attention recently, as the need for more transmission is required for a reliable and resilient grid. It captured attention too, when FERC in April issued a notice of proposed rulemaking aimed at amending its decade-old Order 1000 to once more reform transmission planning.
There is no doubt that enormous amounts of money will be spent on building electric transmission once the cost allocation and planning provisions of the to-be amended Order 1000 are finalized. That puts all eyes on FERC, and so a conversation with FERC Commissioner Mark Christie is timely.
The former Chair of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, and former president of the Organization of PJM States during his time on said SCC, Christie has strong feelings about the significance of the role of states in transmission planning and cost allocation. Listen in on this consequential conversation.
PUF's Steve Mitnick: Why is this subject of transmission planning so important to the country?
Commissioner Mark Christie: It's important for two reasons. Number one, transmission is essential to reliability because you have to get the product to the consumer. The product is electrical power. The consumer is the residential, commercial, or industrial customer. It takes wires to get the electricity to the consumer.