Press Mention Kristi Swartz September 16, 2021
SACE Quoted
Dems' clean electricity plan could leave out big utilities
In this mention
House Democrats' Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP), a $150 billion clean electricity initiative, may exempt the Tennessee Valley Authority and other major utilities from requirements to increase clean electricity generation by 4 percent annually because they don't directly deliver power to consumers. Maggie Shober of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy warns that this omission could unfairly burden smaller downstream power providers with meeting the policy's targets and hefty fees.
The local power companies are completely dependent on TVA to increase clean energy by 4 percent
Maggie Shober
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Full transcript
Dems' clean electricity plan could leave out big utilities
By:
Kristi E. Swartz
Edward Klump
| 09/17/2021 07:13 AM EDT
ENERGYWIRE | The nation's largest public power utility may be exempt from a $150 billion clean electricity plan under consideration in Congress, stoking concerns that the sweeping energy proposal contains significant loopholes and would hit the sector unevenly.
The Clean Electricity Performance Program (CEPP), which passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week, would not require the Tennessee Valley Authority and several other major utilities to ramp up clean electricity generation because they don't directly deliver power to homes and businesses, experts say.
That could put smaller, downstream power providers on the hook for meeting the landmark policy's goal of a 4 percent annual increase in clean electricity resources.
Critics say the blanket approach threatens to leave power providers that don't generate their own electricity unable to meet that target, sticking them with hefty fees in the process.
"The local power companies are completely dependent on TVA to increase clean energy by 4 percent," said Maggie Shober, director of utility reform with the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, who pointed out that omitting utilities like TVA "doesn't seem like it's in line with the CEPP program."