Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

APPROVED                  CHAPTER
                                                                   JUNE 30, 2023                  374
                                                                  BY GOVERNOR               PUBLIC LAW
                                   STATE OF MAINE
                                           _____
                           IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD
                       TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-THREE
                                           _____
                                   S.P. 751 - L.D. 1850
        An Act Relating to Energy Storage and the State's Energy Goals
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
    Sec. 1. 35-A MRSA §3145, as amended by PL 2021, c. 676, Pt. A, §49, is further
amended to read:
§3145. State energy storage policy goals
     The state goal for energy storage system development is at least 300 megawatts of
installed capacity located within the State by December 31, 2025 and at least 400
megawatts of installed capacity located within the State by December 31, 2030. Beginning
January 1, 2031 2024, and every 2 years thereafter, the Governor's Energy Office
established in Title 2, section 9 shall set may reevaluate and increase the state goal for
energy storage system development and report that goal to the joint standing committee of
the Legislature having jurisdiction over energy and utilities matters. For the purposes of
this section, "energy storage system" has the same meaning as in section 3481, subsection
6.
    Sec. 2. Maine energy storage program development. The Governor's Energy
Office, established in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 2, section 9, referred to in this
section as "the office," shall, in consultation with the Public Utilities Commission, evaluate
designs for a program to procure commercially available utility-scale energy storage
systems connected to the transmission and distribution systems, including, but not limited
to, through the use of an index storage credit mechanism.
    1. In evaluating programs for the procurement of energy storage systems, the office
shall consider programs that are likely to be cost-effective for ratepayers and that are likely
to achieve the following objectives:
    A. Advance both the State's climate and clean energy goals and the state energy storage
    policy goals established in Title 35-A, section 3145 through the development of up to
    200 megawatts of incremental energy storage capacity located in the State;
    B. Provide one or more net benefits to the electric grid and to ratepayers, including, but
    not limited to, improved reliability, improved resiliency and incremental delivery of
    renewable electricity to customers;
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    C. Maximize the value of federal incentives; and
    D. Enable the highest value energy storage projects, specifically energy storage
    systems in preferred locations, projects that can serve as an alternative to upgrades of
    the existing transmission system and projects of optimal duration.
For purposes of this subsection, "index storage credit mechanism" means a mechanism for
setting contract prices for energy storage capacity using the difference between a
competitively bid price, or strike price, and daily reference prices calculated using an index
designed to approximate wholesale market revenues available for each megawatt-hour of
capacity and including a mechanism to provide for a net payment from the operator of the
storage capacity project to ratepayers in the event the reference price exceeds the strike
price.
    2. The office shall encourage interested parties to submit relevant information to inform
the evaluation under subsection 1.
    3. No later than March 31, 2024, the office shall complete the evaluation required under
subsection 1 and provide its recommendations to the Public Utilities Commission for a
program to procure up to 200 megawatts of energy storage capacity.
    4. No later than December 31, 2024, the Public Utilities Commission shall review the
recommendations of the report and determine whether the program recommended by the
office is reasonably likely to achieve the objectives established in subsection 1. Upon
finding the proposed program reasonably likely to achieve the objectives established in
subsection 1, the Public Utilities Commission shall take steps to implement the program in
accordance with any applicable authority the commission may have under law and may
submit to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over energy
matters recommendations for any changes to law needed to allow the commission to fully
implement the program. The joint standing committee may report out legislation related to
energy storage to the 132nd Legislature in 2025.
    Sec. 3. Governor's Energy Office; long-duration energy storage report. The
Governor's Energy Office shall study long-duration energy storage, including opportunities
for new and emerging long-duration energy storage technology that would support the
State's need for clean, firm power generation in support of the State's climate and clean
energy goals. The office shall submit a report, along with any recommendations, to the
Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than February 1,
2024. The joint standing committee may report out a bill related to the report to the Second
Regular Session of the 131st Legislature. The report must include, but is not limited to:
    1. A discussion of technology options for long-duration energy storage, including
emerging technologies and a description of their technical operation and commercial
viability, that may be feasible within the State and New England between 2023 and 2040;
   2. An overview of known cost and performance characteristics, as well as development
considerations by technology, such as development timelines, siting requirements or safety
considerations;
    3. A discussion of scenarios for long-duration energy storage technologies, such as
serving as peaking capacity, providing winter reliability or providing benefits through
colocation with renewable resources; and
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    4. Consideration of whether and under what conditions the use of long-duration energy
storage would be cost-effective for ratepayers in the State.
    Sec. 4. Funding. Upon written request of the Governor's Energy Office, for the
purposes of allowing the office to fulfill its responsibilities under sections 2 and 3, the
Public Utilities Commission shall provide:
    1. Reasonable technical, legal and other assistance, including the provision of
requested information; and
     2. Notwithstanding the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 117, funding for
staff and consultants in an amount not to exceed $300,000 from the Public Utilities
Commission Reimbursement Fund established under Title 35-A, section 117.
    Sec. 5. Public Utilities Commission; utility ownership or control of energy
storage. The Public Utilities Commission shall solicit stakeholder input on whether and,
if so, at what cost and under what conditions, including commission approval on a case-
by-case basis, an investor-owned transmission and distribution utility may own, have a
financial interest in or otherwise control an energy storage system, as defined in the Maine
Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 3481, subsection 6, in order to perform its obligations
as a transmission and distribution utility in an effective, prudent and efficient manner. In
making recommendations, in addition to the input received from stakeholders, the
commission shall consider at a minimum:
    1. The role that investor-owned transmission and distribution utility ownership of,
financial interest in or control of energy storage systems may have in:
    A. The achievement of the state energy storage goals established in Title 35-A, section
    3145, including current and future state programs to encourage investment in energy
    storage;
    B. The achievement of the objectives of Title 35-A, chapter 32;
    C. The achievement of the greenhouse gas emissions reduction requirements
    established in Title 38, section 576-A;
    D. The achievement of the renewable energy goals established in Title 35-A, section
    3210;
    E. The achievement of the renewable energy deployment goals of the State, including
    but not limited to the solar deployment goals established in Title 35-A, chapter 34-B
    and the wind energy development goals established in Title 35-A, chapter 34;
    F. The procurement of nonwires alternatives under Title 35-A, section 3132-D; and
    G. The achievement of lower electricity costs for ratepayers; and
    2. Whether the competitive market for energy storage can meet the energy needs of
transmission and distribution utilities at a reasonable cost.
   The commission shall submit a report containing any recommendations based on the
commission's activities under this section related to energy storage to the Joint Standing
Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than February 15, 2024. The
committee may report out a bill related to the subject matter of the report.
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Statutes affected: 
Bill Text LD 1850, SP 751: 35-A.3145, 35-A.3204
Bill Text ACTPUB , Chapter 374: 35-A.3145