At the heart of the challenge for the Energiewende will be to continuously balance consumer demand with fluctuating electricity production from variable renewable resources, such as wind and solar. This will require flexibility on both the supply side and the demand side. New thinking about market design and investment incentives for flexible capabilities, not ju... Read More

Germany’s Energiewende represents a national commitment to meet aggressive economy-wide decarbonization targets and to transform the German power sector from a reliance on nuclear and coal to renewable resources within the next four decades. Germany is unique in the European Union in arriving at a consensus among ruling and opposition parties for a full nuc... Read More

The resources below are offered as part of our Complying with Environmental Regulations Knowledge Management Series. The following papers focus on developing renewable energy resources and integrating those resources on the grid. Dynamic Transfers for Renewable Energy in the Western Interconnection: A dynamic transfer is a coordinated transfer of firm energy... Read More

The resources below are offered as part of our Complying with Environmental Regulations Knowledge Management Series. The following papers provide information on policies to capture energy efficiency and demand-side resources, develop effective energy efficiency programs, and fully value the benefits and costs of demand-side resources. Demand Response as a Po... Read More

The resources below are offered as part of our Complying with Environmental Regulations Knowledge Management Series. These papers provide perspectives on utility resource planning and ongoing portfolio management. Addressing the Effects of Environmental Regulations: Market Factors, Integrated Analyses, and Administrative Processes: In this brief memo, RAP co... Read More

The resources below are offered as part of our Complying with Environmental Regulations Knowledge Management Series. These provide an overview of regulatory principles, ratemaking practices, and strategies for addressing risk. Clean First: Aligning Power Sector Regulation with Environmental and Climate Goals: Clean First is not a single policy, but rather a ... Read More

The resources below are offered as part of our Complying with Environmental Regulations Knowledge Management Series. These provide information on environmental regulations in the US and how those intersect with energy regulation. Addressing the Effects of Environmental Regulations: Market Factors, Integrated Analyses, and Administrative Processes: In this br... Read More

National environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act (CAA) and Clean Water Act (CWA), are dynamic and require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regularly update pollution standards. As a result, these regulations routinely change in ways that state public utility commissions (PUCs) must consider. Commissioners must find ways to ensure resource adeq... Read More

Energy efficiency is widely recognized as a low-cost, readily available resource that provides benefits to utility customers and to society as a whole. One of the most effective means of capturing energy efficiency resources is establishing an energy efficiency obligation (EEO). An energy efficiency obligation (EEO) is a regulatory mechanism that requires obligat... Read More

RAP, in partnership with the Beijing office of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), develops and presents trainings in China on demand-side management (DSM) and energy efficiency. Following the January 2011 implementation of China’s energy efficiency obligation, the need for training has greatly increased. China’s two large grid companies, whi... Read More