Need for Reliability

In the past two decades changes to the transmission and delivery of electricity, as well as new federal regulations on those services, have led to numerous energy reliability projects, such as the MPRP, across the nation.

Background

In 1992, Congress enacted the Energy Policy Act that set the stage for a major change in the electric utility industry for power generation and transmission. The Act authorized the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to promote restructuring of the industry to create a competitive market by separating energy generation from transmission in many jurisdictions, including Maine. While deregulation of energy generation created new opportunities for many independently-owned facilities, it also placed new demands on the national electric grid.

Increased consumption of electricity and several widespread blackouts raised increasing concerns over the reliability of the nation's electric power transmission system. In response to these developments the U.S. Department of Energy conducted The National Transmission Grid Study in 2002, which concluded that:

Without major improvements and upgrades over the next decade, including the application of new and existing technologies to enhance the reliability and efficiency of the entire electric system, our nation's transmission system will fall short of the reliability standards our economy requires and could result in higher costs to consumers.

Those warnings about the nation's transmission system became reality on August 14, 2003, when large portions of the Midwest and Northeast United States and Ontario, Canada, experienced rolling blackouts. The power outage affected an area with an estimated 50 million people in the states of Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey and Ontario, Canada. Power was not restored for 4 days in some parts of the United States.

Energy Policy Act of 2005

In response to the growing number of national and regional energy concerns, including those affecting the generation and delivery of electricity, the United States Congress enacted the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The Act mandated the completion of a National Electric Transmission Congestion Study (August 2006), which identified critical "bottlenecks" and deficiencies affecting the capacity and reliability of our national electric power grid, including several constraints in New England.

A study completed in 2005 by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers for the U.S. Department of Energy estimated that electric power outages and blackouts could cost the nation about $80 billion annually. Click here to read the press release from Berkley Lab Research News.

Independent System Operator for New England

At the regional level, ISO-NE conducts studies and system planning for New England's transmission system. Each year, ISO-NE prepares a comprehensive Regional System Plan that includes forecasts for future electric power needs and how the system can reliably meet that demand. The 2006 Regional System Plan called for significant investments in the electric grid to meet New England's rising power transmission needs over the next 10 years.This resulted in the 2007 Needs Assessment Study, which is explained on the next page.