CEC chairman says transmission for renewable power needed

San Francisco (Platts)--15Mar2006

Tackling transmission congestion should not be the sole focus of federal efforts to designate transmission corridors in the national interest, California Energy Commission Chairman Joseph Desmond said on Tuesday.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 gives the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission authority to make siting decisions for transmission lines in corridors designated to be in the national interest by the US Department of Energy if state and local officials fail to act in a timely manner.

DOE needs to recognize California's critical need for transmission projects that provide access to power from renewable sources, as well as to relieve congestion, Desmond said during a Transmission Collaborative Roundtable, sponsored in part by Energy Security Analysis, a Boston-based independent research firm.

The lack of transmission access to renewables is widely seen one of the biggest barriers to achieving the state's renewable energy goals. One of the projects being considered is the Imperial Valley Transmission Upgrade, which would provide access to renewables in the Imperial Valley. For more information, take a trial to Platts Electric Power Daily at http://electricpowerdaily.platts.com.

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