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Incisive commentary from RAP experts
RAP experts keep their finger on the pulse of the energy sector and provide timely analysis of topics impacting stakeholders TODAY.
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October 20, 2022
A Win for Building Electrification: EPA Elevates Heat Pumps over One-Way ACs
- David Farnsworth ,
- Max Dupuy ,
- Matt Malinowski
Millions of U.S. homes have central air conditioning for the summer and separate fossil fuel heating systems for the winter. A great way to boost home heating electrification is to replace those central air conditioners with look-alike “two-way” heat pump… View Summary +
August 26, 2022
EV smart charging: A golden opportunity for distribution system operators
Electric vehicles (EVs) offer a cleaner, more energy efficient means of transportation than vehicles with internal combustion engines. Less well known is that they also provide a still largely unused resource to improve grid operation. Although the additional electricity demand… View Summary +
July 20, 2022
‘Game on’ for Germany’s heat pump transformation
Time is of the essence if Germany hopes to meet its ambitious net-zero emissions target by 2045. To achieve this goal, the country will have to rapidly transform how it heats its buildings while ridding itself of Russian gas. Alongside… View Summary +
July 8, 2022
The E3-India model: It’s come a long way
- Hector Pollitt ,
- Ranjit Bharvirkar ,
- Frederick Weston
In 2016, the Regulatory Assistance Project approached Cambridge Econometrics about building a new macroeconomic modelling tool for India. The rationale for the model was simple: India needed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, but much of the policy to… View Summary +
June 22, 2022
Utilities Want to Provide EV Fleet “Advisory Services.” Should Regulators Approve?
- Jeff Ackermann
As the electrification of vehicle fleets goes mainstream, fleet owners are facing a gauntlet of challenges, starting with engaging their electric service provider. The utility response of providing “advisory services” is both creative and presents new challenges for utility and… View Summary +
June 16, 2022
Navigating towards net-zero power system: it is not the ‘heading’ but the ‘course’
The energy price and supply risks we are facing today are making the decarbonisation of the power sector by 2035 an even more significant challenge. But if we deviate the heading of our ship from the course for longer than… View Summary +
May 24, 2022
A Song in the Key of E: Emissions, Efficiency, Equity, and Electrification
- Frederick Weston
A lot of folks out there (including we at RAP) have, for the last four decades, been devising ways to make utilities more economically efficient, their customers more energy-efficient, and the power system cleaner, sustainable, more equitable, and non-emitting. But… View Summary +
February 28, 2022
Environmental Regulations and the “No Regrets” Approach: A Refresher for Utility Generators
- John Shenot ,
- David Farnsworth
Many of us have a hard time keeping track of where our federal government stands on environmental issues, especially when viewed through a political lens or from the perspective of the popular press. For example, in 2016 we signed… View Summary +
January 31, 2022
The Complex Landscape of Net Metering Reform in California: Ensuring A Smart TOU Rate Foundation
California, long a leader in rooftop solar, is now wrestling with the complications — as illustrated by the current debate over the California Public Utility Commission’s proposed decision on “net energy metering 3.0,” released last month. Before the end of… View Summary +
December 21, 2021
The Complex Landscape of Net Metering Reform in California: Why an Installed Capacity Charge?
Rooftop solar in California has grown from an infant industry two decades ago to a 10-gigawatt resource that contributes significantly to customer and electric system needs today. The state is blessed with ample sunshine in many regions, and its urgency… View Summary +