SPP said Tuesday that it is limiting attendance at its in-person Board of Directors, Members Committee and Regional State Committee meetings scheduled for October at its Little Rock, Ark., headquarters.
Citing a recent rise of COVID cases in Arkansas and the disease’s persistence, the grid operator said it will restrict access to “rostered members” of the groups and a “handful” of SPP support staff.
“We did not make this decision lightly,” SPP said in an email to stakeholders. “We want to protect the health of our stakeholders and mitigate risk for our staff working on campus. We will miss the opportunity to see some of you in person.”
The RTO said it will stream the meetings for its stakeholders, promising an “immersive experience for those who attend virtually.”
Arkansas’ COVID case count has grown to more than 900,000, about 30% of the state’s population. The average daily increase over a rolling seven-day period recently fell to 962, its lowest level since early July. Only about half of the state’s residents are vaccinated.
The in-person meeting, although lighter in numbers, will be the groups’ second since January 2020. They last met together in Dallas in April.
Under SPP’s new meeting schedule, the board and RSC will alternate in-person and virtual meetings with the Markets and Operations Policy Committee and Strategic Planning Committee each quarter. The two committees met in Denver in July; they are scheduled to next meet in-person this January in Oklahoma City.
