CFTC Commissioner Mersinger Describes Regulatory Challenges in the Energy Markets

CFTC Commissioner Summer K. Mersinger described current regulatory challenges in the energy and power markets, emphasizing the difficulty that regulators face in dealing with new technology under rules and regulations adopted before these advances are made.

In remarks before the S&P Global Commodity Insights Nodal Trading Conference, Ms. Mersinger described the challenge of promoting responsible innovation without injecting new risk into the system. She argued that regulators should not attempt to pick "winners and losers" in the market, but should foster an environment where all technologies can "fairly compete on their own merits." She said that regulators should not attempt to predict which technologies will thrive and which will die, but instead approach the "new and novel with an open mind." She urged regulators to "be prepared for the future" by consulting industry experts and public interest groups about new innovations.

Commissioner Mersinger also highlighted the work of the CFTC's Energy and Environmental Markets Advisory Committee ("EEMAC") and the establishment of two subcommittees under EEMAC, one on Traditional Energy Infrastructure and another on Metals Markets.