Advanced technologies can help boost U.S. electric transmission capacity as large-scale power lines move through yearslong development phases, but the right mix of federal policies will be needed to ensure their deployment at scale, grid experts and policymakers said May 23.

"Ultimately, the grid needs to become a more holistic, seamless entity," Smart Wires Inc. CEO Peter Wells said during a summit hosted in Dallas by the WATT Coalition, an organization of grid-enhancing technology providers. "I struggle to see how we can unleash the energy transition without a more singular platform."

U.S. policymakers are currently looking to boost the deployment of grid-enhancing technologies, or GETs, through a range of measures aimed at harnessing existing transmission infrastructure. A $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law enacted in 2021 included $3 billion in matching grants for GETs projects, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is also weighing GETs-related mandates and financial incentives.

Academic researchers have estimated the U.S. will need to increase its transmission capacity 60% by 2030 to meet its science-based climate goals, a challenge given the siting and cost allocation issues that face new transmission projects.

Technologies such as dynamic line ratings, or DLRs, and advanced power flow controllers can make the job easier by enabling transmission operators to unlock spare capacity on existing power lines. DLRs can boost transmission capacity by up to 40% in some regions by providing a steady stream of real-time data on limiting factors such as wind speed, cloud cover and line tension and sag. Power flow controllers enable transmission operators to shift electricity flows onto adjacent lines with unused capacity.

However, U.S. transmission owners currently lack a financial incentive to pursue GETs projects, which are far cheaper to implement than traditional transmission solutions eligible for cost-of-service rate recovery.

"I think of it as VHS to Hulu Plus," FERC Commissioner Allison Clements said at the summit. "That transition happened within a heavily regulated industry. How do we make the changes that provide for these competitive forces to take hold?"

Carrots and sticks

One solution could be to allow transmission owners and developers to recover a share of the consumer savings associated with GETs projects, which typically involve relatively small upfront investments with short payback periods.

In September 2021, FERC held a technical conference on a shared savings approach proposed by the WATT Coalition as a part of a broader pending rulemaking (RM20-10) aimed at revamping the commission's transmission incentives policies. A similar model is already in use in the U.K.

"The trick here is you've got to get the most conservative industry in U.S. history, and for good purpose, and turn it around in adopting new technologies," former FERC Chairman Pat Wood said during a later panel discussion.

WATT Coalition Executive Director Rob Gramlich emphasized that establishing a clear framework for estimating project benefits will be key to implementing a shared savings model in the U.S.

Questions about whether a GETs project's benefits will ultimately materialize "are immensely frustrating," Gramlich added.

"Name a transmission line where we went back five years later and said, 'Oh, the benefits that we estimated didn't materialize,'" Gramlich said. "When you're talking about regulated industries, you have to make some assessment of a project's value before you undertake any investments."

GETs could prove especially beneficial in transmission-congested areas like the western Midcontinent ISO region, which has a significant amount of wind capacity and more set to come online, said Beth Soholt, executive director of the Clean Grid Alliance.

"I do think we need to do more work to figure out where it's acceptable to use GETs to interconnect to help with congestion," Soholt said.

To that end, FERC launched a notice of inquiry (AD22-5) on DLRs in February to explore whether transmission operators should be required to implement the technology in certain instances.

Independent market monitors for the Southwest Power Pool and PJM Interconnection LLC have called on FERC to require at least some level of DLR implementation as part of that proceeding.

Stacey Crowley, vice president of external affairs for the California ISO, said GETs deployment will likely grow within the single-state grid operator's footprint as companies become more familiar with its stakeholder process.

"The more and more the GETs companies evolve and get out there and engage in our processes, the more we will get those options on the table," Crowley said.

Some transmission providers such as PPL Corp. are already moving forward with GETs projects. National Grid PLC subsidiary National Grid USA also sees the technology as crucial to decarbonization plans in the U.S. Northeast. And Pittsburgh-area utility Duquesne Light Co. launched a pilot project with DLR provider LineVision Inc., which is backed by National Grid, even before the bipartisan infrastructure law was enacted last fall.

But the U.S. cannot rely on a select few utilities to pursue technological innovation, Gramlich said.

"That's a handful out of hundreds of utilities in the country. We need more than that."

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