Four Arizona electricity providers have joined seven Pacific Northwest entities to support the next phase of SPP’s Markets+ development.
SPP announced Tuesday that Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Arizona Public Service, Salt River Project and Tucson Electric Power said in an Aug. 31 letter that they intended to work with the RTO to build a Western market that includes “both a workable governance framework and a robust market design.”
“This will be an important milestone that will enable us to collectively move forward to the next phase,” the entities said.
Last month, seven entities from the Pacific Northwest offered similar support to SPP, following a commitment from the Bonneville Power Administration. (See SPP’s Markets+ Offering Attracts 6 More Western Entities.)
“Adding the desert southwest region to the development of this market adds more value for all participants, and we very much appreciate the contributions from these entities thus far” SPP CEO Barbara Sugg said in a statement.
The four companies serve more than 20 GW of combined peak demand. The Pacific Northwest group accounts for 50 GW of combined peak demand.
SPP plans to have the Markets+ draft service offerings, based on stakeholder input, available for comment by the end of September; the final service offering is scheduled to be distributed Nov. 18. Participants will make financially binding commitments in the first quarter of 2023, at which point the market protocols and tariff language can be drafted.
Markets+ is a conceptual bundle of services that centralize day-ahead and real-time unit commitment and dispatch, provide hurdle-free transmission service across its footprint and pave the way for the reliable integration of a rapidly growing fleet of renewable generation. It is designed for utilities that aren’t ready to pursue full RTO membership.
