Identifying high-value opportunities for non-wire alternatives: A retrospective of state-led approaches

Abstract

State legislatures and Public Utilities Commissions are interested in ensuring prudency in utility investments and their alignment with the public interest. They are also increasingly recognizing the potential climate, financial and technical benefits of incorporating Distributed Energy Resources (DER) in utility planning. Non-wire alternatives (NWAs) have gained popularity in the last decade as a strategy to identify cost-effective opportunities for DER that can defer or replace investments in traditional infrastructure. Therefore, states have established procedures to standardize their consideration. This paper describes and compares the approach of eight states to identify high-value opportunities for NWAs. State’s considerations and frameworks are discussed and compared in the context of five characteristics: i) integration of NWAs to utility planning and the prioritizing of: ii) transparency, iii) accessibility, iv) flexibility, and v) creativity in NWA identification. The discussion is done by identifying NWAenabling legislation or regulation in each state and related policy proceedings, legislation, plans, and media. After the analysis, the paper proposes key considerations to strengthen the role of NWA identification approaches in promoting utility prudency and collaborative culture in utility planning.