FERC last week approved a MISO proposal to charge interconnection customers subject to quarterly operating limit studies $10,000 as a deposit (ER17-568).

MISO had estimated that its annual cost of quarterly operating limit studies for an interconnection customer was about $2,500, which it had been collecting yearly. The change allows the RTO to charge a single $10,000 fee to cover four years and refund any remaining amount when the customer is no longer subject to quarterly operating limits. MISO said the new collection schedule will be more efficient for interconnection administrators.

FERC accepted the Tariff revisions effective Feb. 15, 2017, on the condition that MISO clarify that the $10,000 study deposit is a one-time fee and not due every quarter.

MISO created quarterly operating limits almost a decade ago to allow for the limited operation of some generators based on seasonal studies.

— Amanda Durish Cook