PJM has dropped a plan that would have allowed dispatchers to cut interchange ramp limits in order to reduce price volatility and uplift, the RTO told the Market Implementation Committee last week.

The proposal was received coolly by stakeholders when PJM officials floated it at the MIC’s March meeting. (See Ramp Limits Cause Stir at MIC.)

After internal discussions among PJM staff, the proposal “has been taken off the table,” PJM’s Lisa Morelli told the MIC last week.

Dispatchers will continue to have the ability to limit ramp to protect reliability and may use it more frequently in the future, Morelli said. But PJM will develop manual language to clarify the circumstances under which such action may be taken, she said.

At a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission technical conference April 1, PJM Executive Vice President for Operations Mike Kormos said PJM might consider requiring interchange transactions be scheduled two or three hours in advance so that operators can avoid having too much supply. Current interchange rules allow scheduling with only 15 minutes’ notice.

Kormos said unexpected imports contributed to PJM’s nearly $600 million in uplift costs in January. (See PJM May Offer Firm-Fuel Premium.)