<[link removed]> MARCH NEWSLETTER March Newsletter While the news on competition in energy markets this month has been mixed, there’s certainly been a lot of it. We share a selection of the most interesting stories below, but one that’s worth highlighting here is one that should come as no surprise – Americans love solar energy and want the freedom to install solar panels on their roofs and become more energy independent. Sounds like a good goal to us. A recent poll by Heatmap News <[link removed]> found that “rooftop solar, especially, seems to have captured the hearts of the U.S. public, with 86% of adults saying they would welcome its installation in their communities. This makes rooftop solar the most popular of the 5 zero-emissions sources of power." The Heatmap Climate Poll was conducted in mid-February via online panels by Benenson Strategy Group. The survey included interviews with Americans in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.02 percentage points. Check out more results from the survey at Heatmap.news <[link removed]> . Robert Dillon, Executive Director <[link removed]> ECC Executive Director Featured on OurEnergyPolicy Panel Discussion <[link removed]> On Wednesday, March 1, OurEnergyPolicy <[link removed]> hosted a discussion on competition in energy markets and issues of cost, reliability, and resilience. The webinar <[link removed]> featured the Executive Director of Energy Choice Coalition, Robert Dillon, along with Liam Baker, Senior Vice President of Eastern Generation; Todd Snitchler, President and CEO of Electric Power Supply; Emily Sanford Fisher, Executive Vice President of Clean Energy at Edison Electric Institute; and Nick Loris, Vice President of Public Policy at C3 Solutions. The expert panelists discussed how the rapidly increasing demand for electric power, in combination with frequent climate shocks, exacerbates concerns around reliability, resilience, and keeping costs low for consumers across the power sector. Additionally, the participants examined how competitive markets employ a decentralized approach, utilizing a consumer-centric framework to determine investment priorities while shifting the risks of energy asset investments away from ratepayers to private sector investors. Read More <[link removed]> Noteworthy <[link removed]> Federal Jury Convicts Former Ohio House Speaker, Former Chair of Ohio Republican Party of Racketeering Conspiracy <[link removed]> A federal jury convicted <[link removed]> Larry Householder, the former Speaker of the Ohio House, and Matthew Borges, the former chair of the Ohio Republican Party for their participation in a racketeering conspiracy. In announcing the March 9 conviction, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio described “nearly $61 million in bribes paid to a 501(c)(4) entity to pass and uphold a billion-dollar nuclear plant bailout.” Householder and Borges face up to 20 years in prison. “As presented by the trial team, Larry Householder illegally sold the statehouse, and thus he ultimately betrayed the great people of Ohio he was elected to serve,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth L. Parker. “Matt Borges was a willing co-conspirator, who paid bribe money for insider information to assist Householder. Through its verdict today, the jury reaffirmed that the illegal acts committed by both men will not be tolerated and that they should be held accountable.” Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Renewable Energy Saved ERCOT Ratepayers $11 Billion in 2022 <[link removed]> The group Conservative Texans for Energy Innovation <[link removed]> this week highlighted updates to a 2022 report – “ <[link removed]> The Impact of Renewables in ERCOT” <[link removed]> – showing that the availability of wind and solar power in the state’s energy market saved Texas ratepayers over $11 billion in 2022. The original October 2022 report by Joshua Rhodes of Ideasmiths, quantified the impact of renewables in ERCOT on wholesale clearing prices and avoided fuel costs, water use, and emissions by comparing how the market would have performed with and without wind and solar from 2010 to August 2022. The new economic data updates the report with cost savings for the full 12 months of 2022, according to a memo <[link removed]> from Rhodes to Conservative Texans for Energy Innovation’s state director Matt Welch. Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Leading Residential Solar Provider Seeks to Expand Investment in Virtual Power Plants with DOE Support <[link removed]> A leading energy service provider is looking to expand its rollout of virtual power plant services with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy. Sunnova, one of the country’s largest residential solar providers, has filed <[link removed]> paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission showing that it is looking to progress its buildout of virtual power plants <[link removed]> (VPP) through a $3.3 billion loan from the Department of Energy (DOE)’s Loan Program Office. Per the Department of Energy, VPPs are “generally considered a connected aggregation of distributed energy resource (DER) technologies, offer deeper integration of renewables and demand flexibility, which in turn offers more Americans cleaner and more affordable power.” Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Texas Showdown: Penalizing fast-growing renewables would harm consumers and the economy <[link removed]> The Dallas Morning News <[link removed]> is wondering why Texas legislators would target renewable energy production when it has been such a stellar success in the Lone Star State. It’s a good question. Clean energy has brought more affordable energy to Texans, improved the state’s environmental performance, created jobs, and generated economic activity. While Texas lawmakers aggressively defend fossil fuels and propose billions in new public spending for natural gas plants, largely with a goal of improving reliability on the electric grid. they’re also targeting renewables, proposing limits on growth and pushing for new requirements that would drive up costs for wind and solar power. Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Texas Lawmakers to Hear Bill Threatening State's Competitive Energy Market <[link removed]> The Texas State Senate will take up an energy package today that sponsors claim will strengthen the state’s electricity system, but that threatens to undermine Texas’ first-in-the-nation competitive market and burden Texans with higher energy bills. The legislative package, unveiled earlier this month, comes two years after a deadly winter storm paralyzed the state, sparking a public debate about the power system’s resiliency. Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Offering California Customers Real Solutions Through Competition <[link removed]> Renewable Energy World is out with an article <[link removed]> on the impending implementation of the California Public Utility Commission’s decision to slash net metering rates and the response of one company to continue to encourage adoption of rooftop solar by offering a free battery to consumers as an incentive. Read More <[link removed]> <[link removed]> Impending Report to South Carolina Assembly Explores Electricity Market Reforms <[link removed]> According to the publication Business North Carolina <[link removed]> , a forthcoming report to South Carolina’s General Assembly on electricity market reforms will likely also affect policymakers in North Carolina, as it urges an attempt to create or join a multi-state grid operator “as quickly as possible.” In 2020 South Carolina passed legislation that looked at the potential benefits of encouraging more competition in energy markets <[link removed]> . The draft report, commissioned by South Carolina legislators following the passage of that bill, stresses that the effort should involve both North and South Carolina and claims it could save customers in South Carolina alone upwards of $362 million a year. North Carolina has almost double the number of residents as South Carolina. Read More <[link removed]> Join the fight for #EnergyFreedom and sign-up for the Energy Choice Coalition newsletter. Sign Up Here <[link removed]> What we’re reading Right Direction Economist Lynne Kiesling asks should the same organization operate both transmission grids and wholesale markets? <[link removed]> – Knowledge Problem Sunnova seeks $3.3 billion in DOE loan guarantee to expand virtual power plants <[link removed]> . An SEC filing suggests the federal Loan Programs Office is gearing up to help lower-income households access rooftop solar and batteries that can help the grid – Canary Media A solar panel manufacturer announces it will invest $33 million to build its first U.S. factory <[link removed]> in South Carolina – The State, South Carolina Oklahoma lawmakers should pass legislation preventing utilities from passing the cost of electric vehicle chargers <[link removed]> to customers, which would allow traditional gas stations and convenience stores to fill the gap, writes the head of the state gas station association – The Oklahoman More Texans who have rooftop solar and batteries will be able to sell their spare power to the state grid under a plan starting this month – Bloomberg <[link removed]> Consultants tell South Carolina lawmakers they could save customers money and promote renewables by changing the way electricity is delivered to introduce more competition and efficiency <[link removed]> . (WFAE) Once again, Connecticut lawmakers take hard look at utility accountability <[link removed]> – CT Mirror An energy company partners with an energy retailer to build a “virtual power plant” in Texas <[link removed]> based around its solar and battery storage systems – PV Magazine Georgia lawmakers reach legislative crossover, with bills to expand net-metering and bar Georgia Power from billing customers <[link removed]> for electric vehicle charger expansion both failing to pass – Savannah Morning News New legislation in Delaware raises the cap on the amount of residentially generated solar power and changes the net metering billing structure, a plan the sponsoring lawmaker says buys time to determine how to better integrate <[link removed]> home solar into the state’s grid – Delaware Public Media Wrong Direction Texas lawmakers introduce bills to dramatically reduce wind and solar generation <[link removed]> while using taxpayer money to incentivize construction of natural gas power plants – NPR Activists spread misleading information to fight solar <[link removed]> – NPR Florida lawmakers consider legislation to move power over regional utilities away from a city commission <[link removed]> to a board appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis – Independent Florida Alligator Texas Senate prefers a state monopoly to competition <[link removed]> with Senate Bill 6 which would mean the end of electric market competition – The Texas Energy and Power Newsletter Utilities’ push to extend monopolies may shape grid’s future <[link removed] > – R Street Institute. A Michigan architect says the state’s utilities hold a tight grip <[link removed]> on programs that would allow customers to invest in solar to offset their electric costs – Traverse City Record-Eagle While an upcoming Illinois corruption trial of ComEd and political figures doesn’t directly involve <[link removed]> former House Speaker Michael Madigan, his role instate politics will loom large in the courtroom – Chicago Sun-Times Arkansas lawmakers pass a bill reducing rates paid to customers with rooftop solar systems <[link removed]> beginning in 2025 after a key energy association and an environmental group <[link removed]> agree to drop their opposition – Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas Business The appointment of two members to Virginia’s three-member regulatory board has become gridlocked in partisan politics that may not be resolved until after November’s elections <[link removed]> for the state legislature – Richmond Times-Dispatch Virginia lawmakers pass an omnibus energy bill <[link removed]> that restores state regulators’ traditional power to set rates for Dominion Energy while also allowing the utility a higher profit rate – Virginia Mercury Follow us on Twitter and on the Web at EnergyChoiceCoalition.org <[link removed]> Energy Choice Coalition 25 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 820 Washington, DC 20001 United States Unsubscribe <[link removed]>