EPSA, SEIA Urge FERC to Preserve Competitive Transmission Development
Venue: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Date Filed: May 27, 2026
Proceeding: EL26-58
Summary: The Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) filed a joint Protest at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) urging the Commission to reject a complaint filed by ITC Transmission and twelve other transmission companies seeking to limit competitive transmission solicitation processes in MISO and SPP.
The complaint argues that competitive solicitation processes for certain regional transmission projects are unjust and unreasonable because they require additional time to complete. EPSA and SEIA strongly rebut those claims, emphasizing that the complaint is unsupported by the facts and contrary to longstanding Commission precedent supporting competition in transmission development.
In the filing, EPSA and SEIA explain that competitive transmission processes deliver substantial benefits for consumers by encouraging innovation, improving cost discipline, and reducing project risk. The protest notes that competitive projects frequently include protections such as cost caps, return on equity caps, and enforceable schedule guarantees that are often absent in directly assigned incumbent utility projects.
The filing also challenges the complaint’s core argument that competitive solicitations delay transmission development. EPSA and SEIA point to evidence showing that competitively developed projects can reach service on comparable or faster timelines than incumbent utility projects while also delivering significant cost savings for customers.
The protest further argues that pausing or limiting competitive solicitation processes would reduce transparency and weaken incentives to control costs at a time when the electric grid is facing growing reliability and infrastructure demands.
“If ‘speed to power’ is the goal, eliminating competitive solicitation is not the answer.”
EPSA and SEIA further argue that the complaint’s proposed remedies—including exempting broad categories of projects from competition or pausing competitive solicitations for five years—would undermine the principles established under FERC Order No. 1000 and improperly expand monopoly control over transmission development.
As the filing concludes, open transmission solicitation is part of the broader success story of competition in wholesale electricity markets. Efforts to expand competition in both transmission and generation have delivered enormous consumer benefits while reducing risks and driving innovative solutions across the electric sector. EPSA and SEIA urge FERC to preserve competitive transmission processes and reject attempts to roll back those protections.
Read More:
EPSA Comments on FERC Transmission Regional Planning Proposed Rule
