{ "id": "R45764", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "R", "number": "R45764", "active": true, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov, EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source_dir": "crsreports.congress.gov", "title": "Maintaining Electric Reliability with Wind and Solar Sources: Background and Issues for Congress", "retrieved": "2022-09-09T04:03:32.929345", "id": "R45764_3_2022-08-04", "formats": [ { "filename": "files/2022-08-04_R45764_f1a8d16a3d8b036ca2a452ae2fa1030947126d80.pdf", "format": "PDF", "url": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R45764/3", "sha1": "f1a8d16a3d8b036ca2a452ae2fa1030947126d80" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/2022-08-04_R45764_f1a8d16a3d8b036ca2a452ae2fa1030947126d80.html" } ], "date": "2022-08-04", "summary": null, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov", "typeId": "R", "active": true, "sourceLink": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/details?prodcode=R45764", "type": "CRS Report" }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 600021, "date": "2019-06-10", "retrieved": "2019-12-20T18:55:14.416289", "title": "Maintaining Electric Reliability with Wind and Solar Sources: Background and Issues for Congress", "summary": "The share of wind and solar power in the U.S. electricity mix grew from 1% in 2008 to 8% in 2018. Wind and solar are variable renewable energy (VRE) sources. Unlike conventional sources, weather variability creates uncertainty about the availability of VRE sources. This uncertainty could potentially result in a lack of reliability. \nSome Members of Congress have expressed concerns about the reliability of the electric power system given recent growth in generation from wind and solar sources and projections that growth will continue. According to official metrics, electric reliability was generally stable or improving over the 2013-2017 period. In other words, generation from wind and solar sources does not appear to be causing electric reliability issues at the national level over this period. Questions remain, however, about maintaining reliability if generation from wind and solar should increase above current projections, as some Members of Congress have supported. Entities in the electric power sector and their regulators are evaluating changes to their approaches to reliability to prepare for this possibility. Congress might seek clarification on whether new or modified approaches are required.\nUnder the current regulatory framework, the federal government oversees reliability for the generation and transmission systems of the electric power sector. These components comprise the bulk power system and include large-scale wind and solar sources. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT05; P.L. 109-58) authorized the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to develop and enforce mandatory reliability standards for the bulk power system. Small-scale wind and solar sources, such as rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, are connected to the distribution system which is localized and under state jurisdiction. Federal mandatory reliability standards do not apply to the distribution system. \nThe colloquial definition of reliability is \u201chaving power when it is needed,\u201d but regulators and operators of power system components require a more precise statement of objectives and metrics. FERC and NERC have developed numerous technical standards to address reliability. These standards apply over the range of timescales over which reliability is measured, from milliseconds to years. FERC has approved approximately 100 reliability standards to date, and new standards are developed as needed to respond to changing conditions, including increasing generation from wind and solar sources. Multiple entities spanning multiple jurisdictions work together to maintain electric reliability.\nFor economic reasons, wind and solar sources tend to be utilized to the maximum extent possible. When their availability changes, which can happen quickly, other sources must quickly respond to maintain reliability. Typically, other sources respond by increasing or decreasing their output, an operation known as balancing. Multiple types of electricity sources are used to balance wind and solar, including some fossil fuel-fired generators, some nuclear generators, other wind and solar sources (provided sufficient transmission availability), energy storage, and demand response. Each of these has benefits and limitations. Some sources and system operations that currently support balancing have received federal financial support in the past, such as tax credits, grants to states or other entities, and Department of Energy research programs. Congress might consider continuing or expanding such support, if lawmakers believed current activities affecting reliability were insufficient.\nBeyond developing and enforcing reliability standards, other federal government activities affect electric reliability. For example, FERC\u2019s regulation of interstate electricity transmission can be a key determinant of how effectively different electricity sources can meet demand. FERC\u2019s regulation of the wholesale electricity markets that operate in some regions of the country may also affect reliability, because market rules can influence which individual generators are used for system balancing. Market prices directly affect project revenues, influencing the kinds of sources that are developed. Additionally, some projects and programs Congress funds support reliability by enabling technology development and providing financial support for projects that support reliability.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45764", "sha1": "50945c0f4fbabb031186e406944719d56a16dcff", "filename": "files/20190610_R45764_50945c0f4fbabb031186e406944719d56a16dcff.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/0.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_2ed64488431aad34e62e090c35a3f7271a77a2f9.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/4.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_521288c8db1a57f61f61fe470762217055177c96.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/3.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_98a43e2de12d2fb4a1d97e99f482b414a2e093c7.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/2.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_e620b8adca3e674c80695f3f5887c218d722e609.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/1.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_9d318c3fd829a00c3b4b8407cdaf40fa9a20e9fb.png", "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45764_files&id=/5.png": "files/20190610_R45764_images_1508c496162440b45992f60276c157ef11cba843.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45764", "sha1": "86e698874694683a6df8d2c903099754334bba6e", "filename": "files/20190610_R45764_86e698874694683a6df8d2c903099754334bba6e.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4840, "name": "Electricity" }, { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4927, "name": "Renewable Energy & Efficiency" } ] } ], "topics": [ "Energy Policy" ] }