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California’s Mandatory PV Code Amendment: Is It Really Time for This?

By Jim Lazar
The press has been abuzz this summer about the California Energy Commission’s (CEC) new building code amendment that will require most single-family residential and low-rise multi-family dwellings to incorporate PV systems at construction. The amendment takes effect in 2020. Buildings located where solar will not perform well will be exempt, but the typical Cal... Read More

The carbon floor price—a hammer in need of a toolbox

By Richard Cowart
“If your only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail,” goes the saying. In the context of climate policy, the leading hammer is carbon pricing. To many economists and carbon market enthusiasts, putting a price on carbon is by far the preferred tool to drive down carbon pollution. So, whenever carbon prices fail to reduce emissions fast enough, thos... Read More

Brewing Up the Regulation of the Future

By Camille Kadoch, David Littell, Jessica Shipley
The regulatory system that governs U.S. electric utilities is 130 years old—while our power grid is rapidly modernizing. Utility regulators need a tool that can facilitate reform to keep pace with this change. One tool they are increasingly exploring: performance-based regulation, or PBR for short (no, it’s not a beer, it just sounds like one). A variety o... Read More

Fuel-Switching: We Just Did This in 1990, So Why Are We Doing It Again?

By David Farnsworth
RAP senior advisor Jim Lazar tells a story about doing a cost and environmental analysis on behalf of the Association of Northwest Gas Utilities in 1990, in which he compared space and water heating run on natural-gas-generated electricity to those same end uses fueled directly by gas. Jim’s analysis at that time found that the electric options were not only tw... Read More

Without ambitious energy efficiency goals, the EU will fail Paris targets

By Jan Rosenow, Stefan Scheuer
The Paris Climate Agreement’s entry into force has clearly not yet spurred policymakers to charge toward the goal of limiting climate change to “well below 2°C” and targeting 1.5°C, warn Dr. Jan Rosenow and Stefan Scheuer. Energy efficiency remains the key to success. A new study by the Regulatory Assistance Project, Oeko-Institut, and Stefan Scheuer... Read More

A Toolkit of Global Insights as China Builds Its Power Sector of the Future

By Max Dupuy, Fredrich (Fritz) Kahrl, Frederick Weston
China’s current power sector reforms began in March 2015 with Document #9, which was followed by the 13th Five-Year Plan and a series of further policies that aim to reduce renewables curtailment and further integrate renewable energy into the grid. Despite significant progress toward these goals, policymakers still face several challenges with reducing generat... Read More

对中国电力行业发展的四点建议 

By Max Dupuy, Fredrich (Fritz) Kahrl, Frederick Weston
中国当前的电力行业改革始于2015年3月颁布的“9号文”，“十三五”规划以及一系列致力于减少限电和提升可再生能源消纳的政策文件紧随其后。尽管中国朝着既定目标已经取得了显著的进步，但政策制定者仍然面临一些严峻挑战，诸如发电产能过剩，可再生能源并网问题，... Read More

Keys to integrating electric vehicles already in hand

By Christos Kolokathis, Michael Hogan
Electricity distribution networks in Europe run at well below their full potential, finds a new study from the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). The findings show that the unused network capacity could be utilised for charging electric vehicles with little or no need for additional capacity. Smart pricing and smart grid technologies will be the keys.   “... Read More

美国可再生能源配额制设计经验

By Ryan Wiser, Rachael Terada
中国正在建立可再生能源电力配额制度。国际上可再生能源配额设计的经验可以给中国提供一些参考，比如美国许多州所使用的可再生能源配额制（Renewable Portfolio Standard，简称RPS）。 在中国建立可再生能源电力配额制度时，可以考虑许多类别的设计问题，例如配额比例是基... Read More

When Utility Gas Affiliates Play by Monopoly Rules, Consumers Are Likely to Lose

By David Littell
Can monopolies with market power send business to other regulated monopolies? Can one monopoly create a “need” for which ratepayers will be charged by another related monopoly? As it stands right now, the answer to both these questions is yes. In the United States, we see utility holding companies owning up to eight regulated energy businesses in different af... Read More

The Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)® is an independent, non-partisan, non-governmental organization dedicated to accelerating the transition to a clean, reliable, and efficient energy future.