Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") members
on June 19, 2018, affirmed their commitment to regional energy
market stability. Their remarks came in response to a leaked Trump
administration draft plan and President Trump's own June 1,
2018 public statement that Secretary of Energy Rick Perry
"take immediate steps" to prevent coal and nuclear plant
closures.
Such a directive could mean a policy of requiring regional grid
operators to buy electricity from selected coal and nuclear plants,
which, in turn, could undermine the current power markets developed
with FERC assistance over recent decades. "Avoidance of any
significant distortion in organized markets would very much be a
concern of ours that we would keep an eye on as we proceeded with
the rate matter," said FERC Chairman Kevin McIntyre in
response to a leaked draft plan from the White House. "I
don't see any reason why any of that should interfere with our
ongoing consideration of the grid resilience
