The state Public Service Commission on Thursday ruled utilities must file information about how changes in electricity distribution will impact profits and what it will take to modify systems so that more independent power producers can come online.
The vote in favor of the new requirements came during a meeting that included a half-hour speech by commission Chairwoman Audrey Zibelman about the benefits of strengthening the distribution system while giving customers more control.
“Consumers, before, were relatively content just to pay their bills,” Zibelman said. “Now we’re seeing more and more consumers wanting control, wanting information, wanting to be able to use distributed energy resources such … solar or [thermal energy] or storage differently. That provides both a threat and an opportunity.”
Administrative Law Judge Eleanor Stein said the commission will be looking for utilities to provide information within the year about the impacts of giving control to smaller grids. Guidelines are to be released by May for utilities to determine how cost and benefits are established and by June for how utilities will formulate rates under new distribution systems.
“The third milestone is … the utilities’ filings toward the end of the year of their distributed system implementation plan,” Stein said.
“Key components of the utility filings should include the role and the functions of the distributed system platform and the integration of that platform into utility system planning,” she said.
Stein said each utility will file its plan on Dec. 15.
Commission members noted that comments during public hearings conducted throughout the state, including in Kingston, where there 36 speakers, emphasized the need to have in a reliable local source of electricity. Zibelman agreed with the need for independent systems but warned that major utilities will need to be able afford improvements that avoid being at the mercy of problems in other regions.
“We operate in an integrated grid,” Zibelman said. “We can all remember … in 2003 a tree falling into a line in Ohio and a power plant tripping off and nobody being aware of what’s going on … [and we] had a major blackout across the eastern seaboard.”
Zibelman said there also needs to be an emphasis on reducing the amount of electricity used by residents during peak demand periods.
“If we are able to manage demand efficiently, we can drive prices down – both long-term prices and short-term prices,” she said.
“Because the system is relatively inefficient, a lot of … investment is coming in just to cover just a few hours a year,” Zibelman said. “So if we can manage demand and we can manage that peak, we can avoid that investment.”