A pair of proposed bills aimed at improving grid reliability through installing distributed energy resources like rooftop solar is expected to save the electric bill payers $3 billion through 2050.
Lawmakers in Illinois have submitted a pair of bills, HB5856 and SB3959, to support grid modernization and the encouragement of distributed energy resources like rooftop solar and battery energy storage.
The bills establish a clean energy storage procurement mandate, improving grid resilience while removing barriers to renewable energy resource development and grid interconnection. The pair of bills call for 8.5 GW of energy storage procurement across the state by 2050.
The grid updates are forecast to save Illinois consumers $30 per month on their energy bills, prevent more than $7 billion in blackout-related expenses, and create as much as $16 billion in economic benefits through 2050.
The proposed laws are expected to future-proof Illinois’ energy grid and economy, lower consumer costs, meet climate goals, create careers, and mitigate increasing risks of blackouts. The state has a goal of achieving 100% emissions-free electricity by 2050.
“While Illinois is on the right path to meet its goals, it is at risk of not meeting its more immediate deadlines, which will arrive as early as 2030,” said Senator Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago). “HB5856 and SB3959 are thoughtful, strategic bills that will help unleash the clean energy economy’s full potential while strengthening our electric grid to make it more reliable, encouraging development and job growth, and creating additional protections for consumers and all ratepayers.”
Ratepayers are already feeling the pain of a sluggish interconnection system that is leading to a shortfall of energy supply. The July 2024 PJM Interconnection energy capacity auction suffered an 833% increase in energy prices, due to an anticipated energy capacity shortfall, which will increase power bills by as much as $30 per month for millions of Illinois residents within the PJM Interconnection territory, said the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).
A study by Mark Pruitt, former director of the Illinois Power Agency and Northwestern University professor, found that HB5856’s and SB3959’s target to create 8,500 MW of clean energy storage would provide $3 billion in consumer cost savings, save $7.3 billion in blackout-related costs through increased grid reliability, and generate up to $16.3 billion in economic activity in Illinois by 2050.
The bills also reform electric grid interconnection in Illinois. Currently, the process varies significantly from project to project, which can result in significant unanticipated costs to connect a system to the energy grid. Oftentimes, the large, unanticipated cost arises after the development is completed, which can terminate a project even if the system is built and ready to be energized, said SEIA. HB5856 / SB3959 aims to increase transparency and predictability on the interconnection process to reduce surprise changes and costs and maintain the integrity and safety of the power grid.
“When the system has been built and all that is left is to connect it to the grid, this is not when a project should be stalled or failed. Unfortunately, it happens more than one might think, so HB5856 / SB3959 addresses this in a way that makes the process more transparent and collaborative,” said Carlo Cavallaro, Midwest regional director of the Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA).
Components of the bills:
- Establishes an 8.5 GW utility-scale cumulative storage procurement target for the Illinois Power Agency.
- Creates a storage + solar/wind ecosystem that empowers increased storage development at all scales and multi-tech, from behind-the-meter to utility-scale.
- Creates incentive programs for customers to adopt technology that reduces peak loads, behind-meter storage that reduces peak loads or exports, and combined community solar + storage developments.
- Establishes an energy storage and Virtual Power Plant (VPP) ecosystem that makes it less likely a grid will need to tap non-renewable and high-pollutant fuels during periods of high usage.
Read the full bill text here.
