FERC carbon pricing conference request

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued a public notice that it has received a petition requesting that the Commission hold a technical conference or workshop to discuss integrating state, regional, and national carbon pricing in FERC-jurisdictional organized regional wholesale electric energy markets.

On April 13, 2020, a coalition composed of Advanced Energy Economy, the American Council on Renewable Energy, the American Wind Energy Association, Brookfield Renewable, Calpine Corporation, Competitive Power Ventures, Inc., the Electric Power Supply Association, the Independent Power Producers of New York, Inc., LS Power Associates, L.P., the Natural Gas Supply Association, NextEra Energy, Inc., PJM Power Providers Group, R Street Institute, and Vistra Energy Corp. filed a petition asking the Commission to hold a technical conference or workshop on the intersection of carbon pricing and FERC-jurisdictional wholesale markets.

In the petition, the coalition of "Interested Parties" asked the Commission "to gather a wide range of stakeholders to discuss practical technical and implementation issues that are raised if states or other entities propose to adopt carbon pricing policies in regions with organized wholesale electric energy markets." The Interested Parties clarify that they are not asking the Commission to issue a rule nor to direct implementation of a carbon pricing mechanism, but rather to convene stakeholders for dialogue. The petition cites a 2017 technical conference held by the Commission on carbon pricing issues, and subsequent statements or action by regional transmission organizations including ISO-NE, PJM, NYISO, and CAISO.

The Commission has docketed the proceeding as AD20-14.