Carbon Pricing in Wholesale Energy Markets

As states advance their climate policies with ambitious clean energy targets, wholesale market operators are grappling with questions about if and how electricity markets should evolve as a response. Several ISO/RTOs are looking to change their market rules to include carbon pricing, but there is a diversity in approaches.

NYU's Institute for Policy Integrity and Duke University's Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions hosted a conference on March 3, 2020, in Washington, D.C., that focused on the different approaches for carbon pricing in wholesale energy markets. This conference brief summarizes expert discussion of current initiatives, legal issues, and stakeholder perspectives.