Feds finalize rules to bolster power grid

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has released the final draft of a rule it says will ensure the nation's power grid keeps up with increasing demand for electricity, including power from renewable sources. The rule marks the first time in over 10 years that FERC has imposed regulations on how regions transmit power and the first time it has tackled grid planning for the long term. "Our country is facing an unprecedented surge in demand for affordable electricity while confronting extreme weather threats to the reliability of our grid and trying to stay one step ahead of the massive technological changes we are seeing in our society," says FERC Chairman Willie Phillips in a statement. He points to five events in the last 12 years where extreme weather caused large outages resulting in the deaths of hundreds of people and millions of dollars in damages. One was the 2021