ABSTRACT
This chapter shows how national and regional regulatory, rate structure, and industry standard policies influence the integration of renewable energy resources into the United States grid. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 gave Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) responsibilities related to the integration of renewable energy and enforcement. At the national level, the FERC is the independent agency within the US Department of Energy (DOE) that regulates the interstate transmission of electricity, as well as the transportation of natural gas and oil through interstate pipelines. FERC Order 1000, finalized on July 21, 2011, addresses transmission planning and cost allocation requirements for transmission grid expansion. This order, a follow-up to Order 890, requires each transmission provider to participate in designing regional transmission plans. It also mandates incorporation of public policy requirements into those plans, increased involvement of new transmission project developers into the planning process, and coordination between transmission planning regions.
