[UPDATED on Monday, May 16, to include information about SPP’s second resource advisory.]
SPP said Thursday it expects to have enough generating capacity to meet regional demand through the summer season, hours after issuing a resource advisory for Friday and Saturday in its eastern reliability coordination footprint.
On Monday the RTO issued a second resource advisory, effective noon Wednesday through noon Thursday.
The RTO said it was declaring the advisory because of higher-than-normal temperatures, wind forecast uncertainty and system outages that may force its balancing authorities to use greater unit commitment notification time frames. It said generation and transmission operators have been provided instructions on applicable procedures to follow, including reporting any limitations, fuel shortages or concerns.
The advisory is in effect at noon CT on Friday and has a projected end of 8 p.m. Saturday.
Resource advisories are meant to raise awareness among generation and transmission operators to help ensure regional reliability and do not require the public to conserve energy, SPP said. However, the RTO encouraged individuals to contact their local utility for details specific to their area.
The grid operator expects demand to peak at 51.1 GW this summer, nearly 100 MW over its all-time peak of 51 GW set last July. It said its “diverse fleet of member utilities’ conventional and renewable” resources will be prepared to serve at least 55.5 GW, taking both planned and a margin of unplanned outages into consideration.
“SPP’s job is to prepare for both expected and unexpected scenarios that could affect electric reliability across our region,” Senior Vice President of Operations Bruce Rew said in a statement. “We know how much the 18 million people in our region depend on our services, and we do everything in our power to responsibly and economically keep the lights on.”
Rew said staff work closely with SPP’s member utilities to ensure forecasts are dependable and then maintain contingency plans and monitor the regional grid to be able to respond quickly “if things don’t go as planned.”
James Bryant, a meteorologist for KATV in Little Rock, Ark., told stakeholders during SPP’s annual summer preparedness workshop that a second year of the La Niña weather pattern will result in above-average temperatures in the months ahead.
“It’s going to be a hot summer,” he said Thursday, noting that second years of La Niñas are “notorious” for above-normal temperatures in the central and southern plains.
Drought conditions in much of SPP’s 14-state footprint are also expected to lead to greater chances of above-normal temperatures.
The RTO said its summer seasonal assessment did identify potential local issues that will be addressed with the responsible load-serving entities. It said it will address potential fuel-supply constraints with generator owners and operators on a case-by-case basis.
