The debate over capacity market designs continue here in New England, but now it's on public display through FERC filings, as seen in the linked item below from Rhode Island. States continue to express their opposition to proposals intended to maintain grid reliability while seeking to decarbonize electricity generation. In response the New England States offer a theoretical, economic plan called FCEM, which does not address reliability, which the FCEM authors openly acknowledge and was confirmed in a recent analysis of FCEM by the Analysis Group.
I predict the Connecticut River will become a dry creek bed before New England politicians agree on an ISO New England market design that achieves State Energy Goals AND ensures a reliable electric grid for all. Even after Texas and storm Uri proved that economic market designs produce blackouts the NE States continue to hold strongly to their belief and faith in economic market designs, like FCEM for our electric grid reliability.Â
Grid reliability is, first and foremost, an engineering problem to solve. Economics need to take a back seat to let engineering drive Capacity Market Designs, as Texas proved during storm Uri.