Recorded March 31, 2011

90 minutes

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Overview

FERC's landmark transmission planning and cost allocation rule, proposed in September 2010, has divided an industry still grappling with how power lines should be built and who should pay for them. Comments on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) poured in last year, some in general support and others in adamant opposition. A group of senators, concerned that the rulemaking would stick their constituents with the bill for costly transmission projects, recently introduced legislation to counter it.

At the heart of the debate is how the costs of high-voltage transmission lines delivering remote renewable energy resources to load will be allocated. The NOPR would require regional transmission plans to take into account federal and state public policy requirements, such as renewable energy standards. And while it also requires that costs be assigned in a way that is "roughly commensurate with the distribution of benefits," determining exactly who benefits has proven controversial. Another hotly contested provision of the NOPR would take away incumbent utilities' right of first refusal to build transmission facilities identified as necessary.

Our panel of experts engages in a lively discussion on the rule's most controversial elements and how they could impact your short- and long-term planning strategy.

Agenda

Learning Objectives

Panelists

Patricia Alexander – Advisor, Dickstein Shapiro LLP

Patricia Alexander joined Dickstein Shapiro in 2001 as an energy industry advisor. Ms. Alexander is an economist who participates in cases involving the energy industry with a special emphasis on the regulatory requirements of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and general electricity matters. She has provided advice to clients on a number of FERC rulemakings dealing with the establishment and enforcement of conduct standards for market-based rates for electricity and natural gas blanket marketing certificates, development of price indices and reporting of price data by industry participants, standardizing interconnection procedures and agreements, standard market design, a new open access transmission tariff, electronic filing of rate schedules and market data, and affiliate conduct rules.

The Honorable Joseph T. Kelliher – Executive Vice President, Federal Regulatory Affairs, NextEra Energy, Inc.

In his current role at NextEra Energy, Mr. Kelliher is responsible for managing federal regulatory matters for NextEra Energy and its principal subsidiaries, NextEra Energy Resources and Florida Power & Light Company.

Mr. Kelliher served as Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) from 2005 to 2009. In that role, he served as the chief executive officer of the agency, managing 1,400 employees and a $260 million annual budget. Among the highlights of his chairmanship was efficient implementation of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the largest expansion in FERC regulatory authority since the 1930s. This law gave FERC a new mission to assure reliability of the interstate power grid, granted the agency strong enforcement authority for the first time, and expanded FERC authority in other areas. Chairman Kelliher pursued a series of reforms to promote competitive wholesale power and natural gas markets, improve FERC economic regulation, and strengthen the U.S. energy infrastructure.

Mr. Kelliher has spent his entire professional career working on energy policy matters, serving in a variety of roles in both the public and private sectors. These include senior policy advisor to the Secretary of Energy, and majority counsel to the House Commerce Committee, as well as positions with private corporations, trade associations, and law firms.

Clair J. Moeller – Transmission Asset Management, Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.

Mr. Moeller is responsible for the Midwest ISO's transmission planning functions, transmission services and tariff administration. He has more than 25 years of experience in the operation of power systems in the Upper Midwest.

Prior to joining the Midwest ISO, Mr. Moeller was director of transmission system operations at Xcel Energy Corp. where he managed the implementation of Xcel Energy's post-merger transmission operations. Under Mr. Moeller's leadership, the Midwest ISO adopted an industry-leading, innovative business framework for the participation of independent transmission companies in a regional transmission organization, known as Appendix I to the Midwest ISO's Transmission Owners Agreement. Mr. Moeller completed the executive management program at the Carlson School of Business, University of Minnesota, and earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Iowa State University.

Glen Boshart (moderator) Senior Industry Editor, SNL Energy

Who will benefit

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