The Future Starts Now: Announcing Breakout Panels
Posted on June 14, 2016 by Amelia Lamb
Tags, Conference & Events
As we reported on the CUB blog late last month, the theme for the 2016 CUB Policy Conference is The Future Starts Now. Today, after much deliberation among the staff and with our trusted partners, we are pleased to announce the topics of the day’s six breakout panels.
Topic 1: The Final Frontier: Has SB 1547 Changed Everything?
The passage of the Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Act brings with it some big changes. The impact this landmark legislation will have on Oregon’s carbon emissions, renewable energy development, community solar, and electric vehicles remains uncertain. What is the role of natural gas in a 50% renewable energy mix? How will over- and under-generation be dealt with? How will it affect energy prices and what will be the impact on public power?
Topic 2: Californication: What Do ISOs and EIMs Have to Offer the Northwest?
The CAISO Energy Imbalance Market is taking off, with multiple northwest utilities climbing on board in rapid-fire succession. PacifiCorp is proposing to join the CAISO to make it a truly “regional” transmission operator. How do we ensure that this new regional market is managed fairly for all? Where does it leave BPA and the PUDS? What problems can an ISO solve, and what problems does it leave on the table?
Topic 3: How Will Our Solar Garden Grow?
SB 1547 paved the way for community solar programs, but much uncertainty hangs in the air, as the PUC continues to work on ratemaking rules as well as determining the resource value of solar power. What will community solar programs look like, and who will facilitate them? How do we ensure the 10% mandate for low-income participation is achieved?
Topic 4: Read My Lips: What Do Consumers Want?
As new technologies introduce more flexibility to the energy system, customers have access to more and more choices in how they interact with providers and the billing process, how they manage energy efficiency in the home, what renewable options they want to buy into, and so much more. What needs, desires and priorities are customers reporting today? Our panelists will shed some light on this question by presenting insights culled from recent customer surveys.
Topic 5: A Brave New World: Rate Design For the New Reality
Ratemaking for a traditional utility is fairly straightforward, but the outlook becomes more complicated with the addition of flexibility mechanisms and distributed resources. Does net metering require increasing fixed electric charges or adding demand charges to residential bills? Is time-of- use pricing necessary to fully integrate renewables? How does this impact energy efficiency? How do we fairly allocate the “joint and common” costs of the new modern utility?
Topic 6: Taking it to the Streets: At the Intersection of Energy and Transportation
As our electric and natural gas utilities increasingly interact with the world of alternative fuels, we must understand how these fields will impact each other. Will cheap natural gas lead to a new generation of compressed natural gas vehicles? How does the low carbon fuel standard affect EV sales? Will electric vehicles help support the electric grid, or make it less reliable?
We anticipate a full day of spirited debate and discussion. Stay tuned to our blog for updates as we add speakers and their bios to the roster on the conference website - the full schedule is now posted and will be updated continuously throughout the summer. We will also be posting regular blog articles going into depth about each of the breakout topics. And you can follow conference updates directly by joining the CUB Policy Conference email list (email your info to Amelia Lamb, CUB Communications and Marketing Associate, at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).)
Sponsorships are still available at a variety of levels; contact Pamela White, CUB Development and Communications Director, for information about sponsorship opportunities at (503)227-1984 x10 or by email at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
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12/27/16 | 0 Comments | The Future Starts Now: Announcing Breakout Panels