By Amanda Durish Cook

MISO promised last week to review a plan that could end the system support resource agreement for White Pine Unit 1 in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

American Transmission Co. said MISO could eliminate the need for the 40-MW generator by revising ATC’s system operating guide and making a temporary two-radial reconfiguration of its transmission system, returning it to pre-1998 conditions. ATC said its solution — details of which haven’t yet been made public — could remain in place until either new generation or new transmission are built.

The Michigan Agency for Energy supported ATC’s plan, saying it would save Upper Peninsula ratepayers $7.3 million annually in SSR payments.

“I applaud the problem-solving that led to this solution. I wished all stakeholders had gotten more warning early on so there would have been time to develop and implement this solution before costs started to go up and litigation was needed,” said Valerie Brader, executive director of the agency.

Brader also sent a letter to MISO, urging that the grid operator accept ATC’s proposal “without delay,” as it would not result in Tariff revisions. Bader also criticized the “poor condition” of White Pine Unit 1 and noted its six- to 12-hour cold start time.

ATC spokeswoman Anne Spaltholz said the company is working with MISO on the details of the proposals. The RTO has committed to reviewing ATC’s plan during the Aug. 9 meeting of the West Technical Study Task Force.

FERC has final say in the termination of SSR agreements. If an alternate solution isn’t identified, the 60-year-old White Pine plant will continue SSR operations until 2020.

ALJ Orders Refunds for Presque Isle SSR

In a related case, FERC Administrative Law Judge Michael Haubner issued a 37-page initial decision on July 25 (ER14-1242-006, et al.) concluding that Michigan ratepayers were overcharged by Wisconsin Electric Power Co. (WEPCo) for SSR payments on the 344-MW Presque Isle coal plant in Marquette, Mich., in 2014 and early 2015. The judge says $17 million in refunds plus interest are in order; final say rests with the commission.

The ruling came three months after FERC decided that the SSR rate schedules for the Presque Isle, Escanaba and White Pines power plants were appropriate. (See FERC Upholds 3 MISO SSR Cost Allocations in Upper Peninsula.) The Presque Isle and Escanaba SSRs were terminated in 2015.

Brader blamed MISO for the overages, saying the RTO failed to perform due diligence. “MISO blindly accepted numbers without reviewing their reasonableness, resulting in the state and other interested parties having to challenge the expenses through costly proceedings at FERC,” she said.

In May, MISO asked FERC for permission to revise its SSR procedure to require generation owners to provide 26 weeks’ notice of plant suspensions or retirements. The RTO also wants to relax some confidentiality provisions around SSR agreements. (See “MISO Planning Confidentiality, Notification Changes to Attachment Y Procedure,” MISO Planning Advisory Committee Briefs.)

Cloverland Electric Cooperative, a Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.-based nonprofit that has the highest Presque Isle surcharge at $11.7 million, welcomed the ruling, but said it doesn’t fix the larger SSR problem.

“The judge proposed a refund, but for Cloverland members, this just reduces the costs we will have to pay over the next several months. The judge’s decision is one positive step in the legal process that allows the case to continue,” Cloverland CEO Dan Dasho said in a statement.

Dasho also criticized a 2008 exemption to Michigan’s 10% retail choice cap that allows Upper Peninsula iron ore mines to choose their power suppliers. The decision by iron ore provider Cliffs to leave the Presque Isle plant for another generator is the reason WEPCo decided to close the plant in 2014. Dasho said if the law is not changed, the mines could “leave again,” leaving Upper Peninsula ratepayers responsible for a new $300 million natural gas cogeneration plant planned by Chicago-based Invenergy on the Cliffs mining site.

“Our senators and representative supports our position on this, but the governor’s administration is refusing to have this exemption removed and finally protect all the ratepayers in the Upper Peninsula,” Dasho said.