As the federal government moves to cut greenhouse gas emissions, FERC should recognize the critical role of natural gas to provide baseload generation and complement variable energy resources (VER), such as wind and solar energy, because of its ability to quickly and reliably ramp up to meet electric customers’ demand when wind or sun energy is disrupted, said the Natural Gas Supply Association (NGSA).

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) “policies on the integration of intermittent energy resources should treat fuels fairly and equitably and avoid creating barriers to the use of natural gas,” said Patricia Jagtiani, NGSA’s vice president of regulatory affairs.

“The Commission must be mindful not to inadvertently, or otherwise, impose unduly restrictive policies on other generation sources, or provide greater incentives for VERs, in an attempt to facilitate the viability of these new technologies. The marketplace itself should determine the best generation mix.

“FERC’s role should be to ensure equal and fair access to that marketplace for the full portfolio of energy resources. In this effort to fully accommodate VERs and to ensure that VERs are not discriminated against, we ask that the Commission refrain from tilting the balance to discriminate in favor of VERs,” said the NGSA, which represents major natural gas producers.

NGSA’s comments were in response to FERC’s inquiry exploring the extent to which barriers may exist that impede the reliable and efficient integration of VERs into the electric grid, and whether reforms are needed to remove those barriers [RM10-11].

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