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Jackson, Ryan[jackson.ryan@epa.gov] POLITICO Pro Energy Whiteboard Fri 7/14/2017 11:07:32 PM Report: DOE grid study draft says no threat from renewables
By POLITICO Pro Staff
07/14/2017 07:03 PM EDT
A draft version of the power grid study ordered by Energy Secretary Rick Perry found that wind and solar power did not pose a threat to the U.S. electricity network, Bloomberg News is reporting.
"The power system is more reliable today due to better planning, market discipline, and better operating rules and standards," the July draft obtained by Bloomberg says.
Perry ordered DOE to produce a report on whether federal regulations and tax policies were putting the power grid in jeopardy by driving baseload generating plants like coal and nuclear power into retirement. His April order sparked concerns among lawmakers and renewable advocates that his agency would produce a report that could be used to reduce support for green energy sources and protect coal-fired plants.
The findings in the draft report are under review by DOE's leadership, according to Bloomberg.
A DOE spokeswoman said the draft report appeared to be an outdated version of the report, and that the language cited by Bloomberg was not in the current version.
Last month, Perry said grid experts had expressed fears that baseload power plants were being pushed offline prematurely because of policies that favored renewables at the expense of coal.
"These are politically driven policies driven by a hostility to coal," he said.
Electricity analysts and utility companies have largely blamed the steep jump in U.S. natural gasfired power production, flat power consumption and the lower efficiency of the aging coal plants for the drop in coal's share of the power market, since wind and solar still make up a small part of the nation's energy mix.
WHAT'S NEXT: DOE may release its grid study as early as next week.
Darius Dixon contributed to this report.
To view online'. https://www.politicopro.com/energy/whiteboard/2017/07/report-doe-grid-study-draft-says-nothreat-from-renewables-090583
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