At the end of July, regulations were published to withdraw Virginia from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The regulation, which was to take effect on August 30, 2023, requires that Virginia withdraw from the RGGI program at the end of this year. As expected, a legal challenge was filed immediately by the SELC.
Earlier this month, PJM issued an update on its new process for studying New Service Requests from generators seeking Interconnection Service Agreements (ISAs) or Wholesale Market Participant Agreements (WMPAs). This new process was approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on November 29, 2022, and was implemented to address the significant backlog of generation projects with queue positions awaiting ISAs or WMPAs.
In ESAI’s latest Capacity Watch update, ESAI delivers our NYISO Capacity Market Forecast out to 2032/33 Capability Year.
RGGI quarterly Auction 60 was held on June 7, 2023. The clearing price was $12.73/ton, 1.8 percent higher than the clearing price of $12.50/ton on March 8, 2023 (see Figure 1). Auction 60 represents the first auction with a clearing price higher than the previous auction since Auction 56 in June 2022, reversing the recent trend of declining clearing prices.
ESAI brings 20 years of experience analyzing and forecasting the Capacity Markets in PJM, ISO-NE and NYISO, into our new Capacity coverage of MISO. ESAI also maintains a MISO Energy Asset Database (Delivered to subscribers in excel) that tracks the MISO Interconnection queue to forecast Renewables Additions that produces a Probability Weighted Renewable Additions forecast, any Fossil Additions, and also any plant Retirements or forecasting plants at risk of retirement.
The most recent RGGI quarterly auction (Auction 59) was held on March 8, 2023. The clearing price was $12.50/ton, 3.8% lower than the clearing price of $12.99/ton on December 7, 2022 (see Figure 1). Auction 59 represents the third consecutive auction with a clearing price at least three percent lower than the previous auction. The trend of lower clearing prices in recent auctions is notable given that clearing prices had increased in 12 consecutive auctions from September 2019 through June 2022.
In ESAI’s latest Capacity Watch report, we analyze the ISO-NE FCA17, Forward Capacity Auction. ESAI’s coverage includes auction parameters, qualified capacity, and expected auction dynamics. These are all detailed in our Capacity Watch report.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed rule to strengthen the primary (health-based) annual National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for fine particle pollution, PM2.5. Specifically, the EPA is proposing to revise the primary annual standard from 12.0 µg/m3 to a value within the range of 9.0 and 10.0 µg/m3.
FERC Approved PJM’s Queue Reform Proposal. These reforms are intended to address the significant backlog of generation projects with queue positions awaiting ISAs or WMPAs. With this approval, PJM will process New Service Requests under a “first-ready, first-served” approach going forward rather than its current “first-come, first-served” approach.
Ethan Howland reports in Utility Dive that in a move that could add to regulatory requirements for coal-fired power plants, the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday proposed tightening the primary annual air quality standard for fine particulate matter, called PM 2.5, to a range of 9 micrograms per cubic meter to 10 µg/m3 from 12 µg/m3. Coal plants owners in nonattaintment areas for a revised standard will have to meet requirements outlined in any approved state plans for meeting the federal PM 2.5 limit, according to Julia Criscuolo, ESAI Power manager of renewables and emissions.
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ESAI Power is a market research and consulting firm that delivers focused analysis of the wholesale power markets in the Northeast region of the US: PJM, NYISO, and ISO-NE. Since 2001, ESAI has been providing market-focused research product content and custom consulting services for Northeast power market participants including investors (banks, private equity, & hedge funds) & developers, generation owners & operators, utilities & retail electricity suppliers, regulators & RTOs, traders, and end-users & buyers.