Identifying and preventing risks to the long term reliability of electric grid and electricity generation

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every two years thereafter, the Electric Reliability Organization (as defined in section 215(a)(2) of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824o(a)(2))), in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Regional Transmission Organizations, and Independent System Operators, shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that—(1)identifies State and Federal policies that affect, or could affect, the retirement of facilities that generate electricity, including retirement of such facilities that may occur because the costs of compliance with such policies economically disadvantages such facilities;(2)describes the impact of electric utility-level environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments and policies on electric grid reliability and whether such commitments and policies contribute to the retirement of facilities that generate electricity;(3)identifies the estimated number of facilities that generate electricity in the United States that will be retired, per calendar year, until 2030;(4)describes the estimated increase in demand for electricity until calendar year 2030, taking into consideration State and Federal economy-wide electrification efforts, and whether the estimated level of new electricity generation that will connect to the bulk-power system, including facilities and control facilities and control systems necessary for operating an interconnected electricity transmission network and electricity from generation facilities needed to maintain transmission system reliability, will meet such estimated increase in demand for electricity by calendar year 2030;(5)outlines whether the current pace of facilities that generate electricity from non-dispatchable variable energy resources connecting to the bulk-power system is sufficient—(A)to exceed the pace of retirement of facilities that generate electricity from dispatchable, firm, or flexible resources; and(B)to meet the estimated increase in demand for electricity by calendar year 2030;(6)provides recommendations to improve the reliability of the electric grid and to ensure that electricity generation can meet estimated demand for electricity by calendar year 2030, as well as anticipated reserve margins;(7)identifies whether increased electricity generation from natural gas and increased natural gas transportation is essential to the reliability of the electric grid by calendar year 2030 and the importance of natural gas for electricity generation as a balancing, flexible resource; and(8)quantifies the benefits of generation of electricity using flexible resources that can dispatch on demand, are able to counter variations in electricity generation and demand, and balance generation of electricity using intermittent and non-dispatchable resources.