Today, the Solar and Storage Industries Institute (SI2) released a comprehensive white paper on interconnection challenges in the solar and storage industries and proposed new solutions to accelerate the clean energy transition.
The report builds on recent analyzes from Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Energy and recommends that grid operators and regulators create more holistic, comprehensive regional transmission planning processes and a new financing paradigm for transmission upgrade costs. These recommendations would more equitably distribute transmission upgrade costs and reduce uncertainty in the interconnection process, resulting in lower interconnection costs, a more robust transmission system and faster renewable energy deployment.
David Gahl, Executive Director of SI2, emphasized the need to address the underlying issues that have disrupted the interconnection process, saying: “We cannot continue to saddle the interconnection process with all the costs of transmission system upgrades. This process is similar to contracting a paving company to replace your driveway in New York State and receiving a bill for the driveway and the cost of building a new I-95 exit in New Jersey.
The report states that new regional transmission planning processes should integrate interconnection queue data alongside demand and resource mix forecasts and regional clean energy targets. Doing so would allow transmission planners to better respond to demonstrated transmission needs, ultimately reducing transmission system costs and reducing interconnection backlogs.
Additionally, the report states that FERC, Congress and grid operators must reimagine the interconnection financing paradigm to limit grid upgrade costs to measures that securely connect projects to the local transmission grid. By creating a higher queuing access rate that supports expanded transmission needs and limiting queuing entrant costs for local network upgrades, policymakers can streamline the interconnection process, reducing queuing and interconnection costs and enabling faster deployment of renewables.
“America’s ability to achieve our climate goals begins and ends with how efficiently we can connect projects to the grid,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). “The interconnection process is a black box with unknown wait times and costs for clean energy developers. We need the solutions outlined in SI2’s report to meet growing electricity demand with reliable, low-cost solar and storage.”
The Inflation Reduction Act is driving a surge in demand for clean energy, further straining the already stressed interconnection system. According to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the interconnection queue grew 30% in the past year, reaching a record 2,600 gigawatts. Projects installed in 2023 took an average of five years to complete the interconnection process, compared to three years for projects completed in 2015.
“This report confirms that to solve the interconnection problem, we must plan and build an electric grid that can support a clean future,” said Tom Rutigliano, Senior Advocate at the NRDC. “Process reforms to unburden congested interconnection processes are an essential step to accelerate projects already awaiting approval. But to end the multi-year delays and get ahead of the problem, FERC’s upcoming transmission scheduling rule should put us on a path to building a comprehensive electric grid that can accommodate the enormous range of projects we face. can continue to expect in the coming years.”
As the country embarks on a transformative journey toward a greener, more resilient energy infrastructure, SI2’s analysis serves as a roadmap for policymakers, industry stakeholders and advocates committed to advancing clean energy solutions.
Read the full report here.
News release from the Solar and Storage Industries Institute
