Several Advanced Energy Management Alliance (AEMA) members have joined the chorus of groups asking the Supreme Court to hear an appeal of a lower court ruling that jeopardizes the way demand response works in the United States.
The case involves Order 745 issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Under Order 745, compensation in the wholesale energy markets is the same for demand response as for traditional electricity generation. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned Order 745 in 2014 on the basis that FERC was prohibited from regulating compensation for demand response in the energy markets covered by the Order.
The decision threatens to change the way demand response operates in the United States and has been appealed to the Supreme Court.
Groups wanting the Supreme Court to hear the appeal include EnerNOC, EnergyConnect, the PJM Industrial Customer Coalition, the Coalition of MISO Transmission Customers, and Viridity, all of whom had standing in the case. In addition, a long list of environmental groups, government stakeholders and industry groups want the decision reversed.
AEMA says, “We anticipate that a group made up of incumbent electricity generators whose profits are adversely affected by the cost savings demand response delivers to consumers will continue to oppose the effort to have the Supreme Court review this case.”
