Devin Hartman writes in RealClearEnergy about the need for conservatives to lead on electric transmission reform.
- Of the $20-$25 billion spent on transmission each year, over 90% is not subject to competitive bidding or cost-benefit analyses.
- While local and regional transmission problems can be fixed by regulatory leaders implementing competitive bidding, fixing interregional transmission proves to be a more difficult task.
- Because no regulatory framework for interregional transmission exists, hardly any interregional transmission has been developed.
- Conservatives can lead on this issue and bring reliable, affordable power to consumers, by proposing solutions to build more infrastructure and introduce more competition and fewer monopolies into the bidding process.
“Conservative thought leaders have been resistant to the idea of Congress imposing an arbitrary requirement on interregional transfer. Their instincts serve them well. Grid economics and reliability conditions vary by region. Some conservatives skeptical of a uniform requirement find a tailored approach more appealing, where transfer levels are determined by region-specific reliability conditions and benefit-cost analysis.”
Read the full article here.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.
