Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón

Andrea I. Sarmentero Garzón chairs the firm’s Energy Practice Group and is resident in its Washington, D.C. office. Ms. Sarmentero represents clients in transactional, regulatory, and compliance matters in the electric and natural gas industries. She advocates for her clients in litigation and settlement proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and in the federal courts of appeals. Ms. Sarmentero’s regulatory practice includes advising clients on issues involving utility and pipeline revenue requirements, electric transmission rates and incentives, electric transmission planning and cost allocation, pipeline transportation rates, pipeline certificate proceedings, participation in regional energy and capacity markets, FERC’s jurisdictional boundaries, grid resilience and reactive power revenue requirements. Ms. Sarmentero is experienced in drafting and negotiating agreements for energy transactions, including agreements addressing ownership and operation of transmission and generation facilities, capital investments, power purchases, engineering procurement and construction, dynamic transfers of electricity, interconnections, and water and power supply. She advises clients on matters concerning compliance with FERC’s pro-forma open access transmission tariff, FERC regulations, policies and standards, NERC electric reliability standards, and PHMSA safety regulations for natural gas pipelines.

Admitted to Practice

• New York
• Spain-Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Madrid

Court Admission

• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit

Ms. Sarmentero has represented clients on various rate proceedings initiated pursuant to Section 4 and Section 5 of the Natural Gas Act. She successfully represented a client in litigation to reduce the Return on Equity of transmission utilities in the MISO region resulting in multi-million dollar reductions in wholesale electric rates. Ms. Sarmentero also negotiated and prepared documentation to transfer operational control of transmission facilities to the CAISO and to PJM Interconnection.

Prior to joining Jennings Strouss, Ms. Sarmentero worked at the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities’ Counsel Office where she gained a good understanding of public utilities’ businesses and regulatory compliance obligations at the state and federal levels. While at the New Jersey Board, Ms. Sarmentero was heavily involved in regulatory activities at NARUC and OPSI. As part of her work with NARUC International, she went to Kosovo to help energy regulators resolve electric market design issues while ensuring compliance with EU legislation. Ms. Sarmentero also worked with the World Bank in an electricity restructuring research project seeking to understand regulatory investment risks in Eastern Europe. Ms. Sarmentero has extensive energy regulatory and transactional experience in Europe where she worked at the Council of European Energy Regulators, COGEN Europe and at the Council of the European Union on matters concerning approval and implementation of EU energy legislation, including the Third Energy Package. Ms. Sarmentero also represented utility clients on energy regulatory and transactional matters in the Madrid office of a global law firm.

Articles

• “FERC considers incentivizing resilient transmission,” Author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 105, No. 3 (Autumn 2019)
• “Forty Years after enactment: How will PURPA evolve?” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 105, No. 2 (Spring/Summer 2019)
• “Defining and Compensating Resilience Attributes: An Opportunity for District Energy Systems?” Author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 104, No. 3 (Third Quarter 2018)
• “Developments in FERC Policy for Determining Return on Equity,” Co-author, Energy Law Journal (2017)
• “FERC to reform interconnection procedures for large generators,” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 103, No. 2 (Second Quarter 2017)
• “In the wake of Hughes v. Talen Energy, might states turn to CHP to help meet future energy demand?” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 103, No. 1 (First Quarter 2017)
• “Grid Interconnection Rules for District Energy/CHP Systems,” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 102, No. 1 (Second Quarter 2016)
• “The Benefits of Project Finance for Renewable Energy Facilities,” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 101, No. 4 (Fourth Quarter 2015)
• “D.C. Circuit Decision Brings Uncertainty to CHP Participation in Demand Response Markets,” Co-author, District Energy Magazine, Vol. 101, No. 1 (First Quarter 2015)
• “New Laws Promote Development of Small Hydropower Projects,” Co-author, Energy and Natural Resources Litigation Committee Newsletter, American Bar Association (2014)

Blogs

• “FERC to Explore Policy Changes on Transmission Rate Incentives and Base ROE,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (March 25, 2019)
• “Fourth Circuit Vacates National Park Service Right-of-Way Permit for Atlantic Coast Pipeline Project,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (August 8, 2018)
• “FERC To Expand PJM’s Minimum Offer Price Rule to All Planned and Existing Resources – A Battle To Preserve States’ Jurisdiction Over Generation Facilities and to Carve Out Appropriate Exemptions Ensues,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (July 3, 2018)
• “FERC Initiates Review of Its Long-Standing Pipeline Certificate Policy Statement,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (April 23, 2018)
• “FERC Issues Orders in Cases Involving Rates for Transmission Service, Wholesale Power Rates, and Competition in RTO Markets,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (April 6, 2018)
• “FERC Terminates Rulemaking Aimed at Increasing RTO/ISO Reliance On Merchant Coal and Nuclear Resources, Initiates New Proceeding to Explore RTO/ISO Resilience Issues,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (January 1, 2018)
• “DOE Requires FERC to Consider Rule Promoting Grid Resiliency by Providing Coal and Nuclear Plant Subsidies,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (October 6, 2017)
• “The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Remands FERC Orders Addressing Participation by Non-Jurisdictional Utilities in the WestConnect Transmission Planning Region and Re-Opens Cost Allocation Issue,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (August 18, 2016)
• “The United States Supreme Court Limited the Ability of States to Promote Generation Development,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (April 20, 2016)
• “FERC Refines Pipeline Cost-Allocation Policies in Order on Remand,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (March 21, 2016)
• “The D.C. Circuit Rejects FERC’s Geographical Limitation of Municipal Preference in Hydro Licensing Proceedings,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (December 1, 2015)
• “FERC Accepts Pro Forma Agreement for Transmission Project Developers in the CAISO, Enabling New Opportunity to Join the CAISO Only as a Partial Participating Transmission Owner,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (December 11, 2014)
• “FERC Concerned About Impact of Fuel Assurance on generator Performance and Electric Markets Operations,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (December 1, 2014)
• “FERC Approved First Pilot Project to Test the Fast-Track Licensing Process Provided in the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (August 8, 2014)
• “FERC Changes ROE Methodology for Public Utilities,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (June 20, 2014)
• “EPA Publishes New Regulations on Greenhouse Gas Emissions,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (June 20, 2014)
• “FERC and the CFTC Reach Agreement on Jurisdiction and Information Sharing,” Author, Jennings Strouss Blog (January 10, 2014)
• “FERC Confirms That Non-Jurisdictional Contract Rates Are Not Pass-Through Rates Subject To FERC’s Jurisdiction,” Co-author, Jennings Strouss Blog (August 23, 2013)
• “FERC Schedules a Staff Technical Conference on California’s Reliability Issues,” Author, Jennings Strouss Blog (July 18, 2013)
• “FERC’s Ruling on PJM’s Minimum Offer Pricing Rule Exempts Self-Supply LSEs,” Author, Jennings Strouss Blog (May 8, 2013)

Interviews

• “Member Highlight: Andrea Sarmentero Garzon,” Advancing Women in Energy

Videos

• “What Is FERC Order No. 1000?” (2014)

Presentations

• “Rate Design & Support Mechanisms For Distributed Solar Energy,” Presenter, Arizona Mexico Commission (June 27, 2019)
• “Subsidizing New and Existing Generation: Needed Investment from Consumers? Or Consumers’ Exploitation?” Presenter, APPA Legal Seminar (2016)
• “The Latest Threat to Capacity Markets: Customers!” Presenter, APPA Legal Seminar (2013)

New York State Bar Association

American Bar Association

• Member, Environment, Energy and Resources Section
• Member, Antitrust Section

Energy Bar Association

• Board of Directors, Northeast Chapter

Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Madrid

Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia

Women’s Energy Network

• NEA-OCDE Fellowship (2005)

• Spanish (Native)
• French (Intermediate)