US Court Upholds FERC Order to Speed Grid Interconnection for Clean Energy

A US court has upheld a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) plan to speed up the permitting process for connecting energy projects to the grid.

FERC Order No. 2023 was challenged in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals by several grid operators and utilities. However, on Friday 31 July, the court upheld the order.

The order was introduced in 2023 and sought to address the huge interconnection queue backlog of projects waiting to connect to US power grids, almost all of which were solar PV, wind power and energy storage projects. Data shows that there was around 2,600GW of energy project capacity in US interconnection queues at the end of 2023.

It proposes replacing the first-come, first-served system with a requirement for operators to assess projects in clusters and award connection places based on readiness, along with greater transparency and survey requirements. It also raises the financial and other commitments that generators must make to enter and remain in the queue.

“This is a win for ratepayers, competition, and the environment. It will help speed interconnection processes and unlock cheaper, cleaner energy that has been waiting years to connect to the grid,” said Alexander Tom, attorney for Earthjustice who argued the case before the DC Circuit Court of Appeals.

The grid operators and utilities that opposed the order said that fines for late interconnection studies were too steep and overstepped FERC’s legal bounds, arguing that the regulator had not successfully proven that the interconnection delays were the fault of grid operators. The court’s three-judge panel disagreed.

Since the initial order was proposed in 2023, projected US power demand has increased as a result of AI data centre expansion and greater electrification. A better interconnection queue process could force operators to meet growing demand more effectively, and with the backlog of renewable energy projects that have been stranded in queues.

To read the full version of this story, visit PV Tech, where it first appeared.