Electric Power Supply Association urges FERC to create policies that put consumers first

The Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) sent detailed statements to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Tuesday urging the organization to force energy associations to create policies that keep prices fair for consumers.

FERC required each Independent System Operator (ISO) and Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) to submit statements regarding energy price reformation concerns. EPSA critiqued FERC for neglecting to take action in light of its new data that could protect consumers from large, market-wide shifts that do not keep policies relevant on the ground.

“The power sector is in the early stages of what will likely be a multi-year, even multi-decade, series of profound changes to how electricity is generated and consumed,” EPSA said. “In the face of this rapid and ongoing change, well-designed and properly regulated competitive wholesale markets remain the best model to manage these challenges and risks because markets are inherently more flexible, adaptable, and place more risks on the investors than consumers.”

EPSA also critiqued FERC for collecting organization-wide statements in 2013 while neglecting to implement any real-world changes in response to member demands and pricing concerns. EPSA’s comments urged FERC to take a different approach this time.