Transmission investment has been declining since 1975, while at the same time investment in generation assets has increased. This has created congestion in power flows. Deregulation of the electric industry and open access transmission policies are the major causes of this disconnect, and it has become clear that the market by itself will not solve the problem.

Increasing U.S. Transmission Investment aims to provide the reader with an understanding of the incentives and other methods being employed to increase transmission investment to the level needed to ensure reliable operations with a minimum of congestion.

Topics covered in the report include:

• Overview of the historical and current levels of investment in electric power transmission
• Analysis of the impact of open access and deregulation on power flows
• Evaluation of the causes of inadequate levels of transmission investment
• Description of the impact of inadequate investment on the electric industry
• Discussion of incentives used to encourage transmission investment
• Analysis of FERC Order 679's objectives, methods, and specific incentives for transmission investment
• Identification of projects where Order 679 has been applied
• Discussion of TransCos and the benefits they bring to a market needing more investment
• Analysis of FERC's TransCo-specific incentives
• Review of the track record of TransCos
• Identification of transmission needs to support renewable energy
• Description of specific initiatives to incent transmission investment for renewable energy
• Discussion of merchant transmission projects and FERC rules on market-based pricing

Increasing U.S. Transmission Investment comes in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and is available via electronic download, CD-ROM, or Hardcopy for $299.