Federal regulators should consider specific reforms to improve transmission planning, lower interconnection costs and provide cost certainty, says a group affiliated with the Solar Energy Industries Association.
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As the Inflation Reduction Act ramps up clean energy efforts across the U.S. the Biden administration outlines a plan to enhance transmission lines to accommodate more power.
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Replacing existing transmission lines, known as conductors, with advanced conductors could enable 764 GW of transmission-connected solar by 2035 even if transmission in new corridors was limited, found a study by UC Berkeley and GridLab researchers.
Reforms to siting, permitting, and transmission were requested by a coalition of about 200 solar and energy storage companies.
Advanced conductors and energy storage are among the technologies that have substantial potential to increase transmission capacity, says a Department of Energy “liftoff” report.
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To speed interconnection of utility-scale renewables and storage projects, a U.S. Department of Energy roadmap sets forth 35 solutions and proposes actions to implement the solutions. The roadmap was developed through a DOE stakeholder process known as i2X.
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