NV Energy has asked Nevada regulators for permission to join CAISO’s Extended Day-Ahead Market — a request that, if approved, would fill in a central piece of the market’s footprint.
The company filed the request with the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada on Oct. 22 as an amendment to its 2025-2027 Energy Supply Plan. NV Energy’s target date for EDAM entry is fall 2028.
The PUC is expected to issue an order within 135 days.
Factors in NV Energy’s decision include its positive experience with CAISO’s Western Energy Imbalance Market (WEIM), the company said in its filing.
And larger economic benefits are expected from joining EDAM rather than SPP’s Markets+. A Brattle Group study, updated in October, projected that NV Energy would save $93.1 million a year by joining EDAM, relative to participating in WEIM alone. In contrast, joining Markets+ would increase annual costs by an estimated $7.3 million.
NV Energy also pointed to better transmission connectivity with the anticipated EDAM market footprint compared to that of Markets+.
Another factor the company cited was the governance of EDAM as enhanced by West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative and California’s AB 825, “including CAISO’s ability to respond more expeditiously to events with targeted, expedited stakeholder processes.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 825 into law in September, allowing CAISO to transition the governance of its markets to an independent “regional organization.” (See Newsom Signs Calif. Pathways Bill into Law.)
NV Energy also said it prefers certain EDAM market design features, including its resource sufficiency test, congestion rent allocation, virtual bidding, greenhouse gas accounting and voluntary participation in Western Power Pool’s Western Resource Adequacy Program (WRAP).
The company announced in August that it plans to withdraw from WRAP and revealed on Oct. 21 that it has been working with other EDAM participants on a potential alternative Western resource adequacy program. (See related story, EDAM Participants Exploring Potential New Western RA Program.)
In October 2023, the Nevada PUC opened a docket regarding regional market activities in the Western Interconnection. As part of the proceeding, the commission approved a report outlining the criteria to be addressed in a utility’s application to join a regional market. NV Energy’s application to join EDAM follows its announcement in May 2024 that it planned to join EDAM rather than SPP’s Markets+.
Other entities on board with EDAM are PacifiCorp and Portland General Electric, which have formally committed to joining in 2026. The Balancing Authority of Northern California, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) and Turlock Irrigation District have signed agreements to join in 2027; Imperial Irrigation District plans to join in 2028.
Arizona G&T Cooperatives, BHE Montana and Idaho Power have indicated they’re leaning toward EDAM.
NV Energy’s entry would add a substantial chunk of territory to the EDAM footprint, between California entities and PacifiCorp West to the west and PacifiCorp East to the east. Idaho Power would be directly to the north, while PNM extends the footprint deeper into the Southwest.
“Joining [EDAM] positions Nevada at the heart of the Western grid, connecting the Southwest and the Northwest to efficiently share affordable, reliable and flexible power across the region,” said Emilie Olson, Nevada lead at Advanced Energy United.
Olson said that joining a robust regional energy market is essential to NV Energy for controlling costs while tapping into a diverse regional energy mix.
CAISO said NV Energy’s filing is “a significant step forward” in its plans to join EDAM.
“We are eager to work with NV Energy and all the EDAM entities to deliver the full range of benefits, including improved resource sharing and meaningful cost savings for consumers across the West,” the ISO said in a statement.
