SPP and Associated Electric Cooperative Inc. (AECI) have given stakeholders until Nov. 15 to review a draft study that has identified potential joint transmission projects mutually beneficial to the grid operators. 

The 2024 Joint and Coordinated System Planning (JCSP) study found several projects of interest to SPP and AECI. Several of the projects also are in SPP’s 2024 Integrated Transmission Plan (ITP) portfolio that recently was approved by the RTO’s board. (See SPP Board Approves $7.65B ITP, Delays Contentious Issue.) 

“Some of these projects may look very familiar,” SPP’s Clint Savoy, manager of interregional strategy and engagement, said during a Nov. 1 meeting of the AECI-SPP Interregional Planning Stakeholder Advisory Committee. “We tried to cast a wide net with this study.” 

Savoy said it was unlikely any of the projects in the report would replace any from the ITP, but that staff were looking for projects with “even the smallest potential for cost sharing.” 

The 2024 JCSP study horizon included modeling the transmission system for the next 10 years, which will provide lead time so appropriate approvals may be obtained, and project owners can begin work promptly. 

The grid operators plan to review the feedback and issue a final report. They will continue to filter through the list of projects and determine which ones, if any, meet the qualifications for sharing costs. 

The AECI-SPP joint operating agreement requires staff to conduct a JCSP study every other year to ensure the reliable, efficient, effective planning and operation of the transmission system along the grid operators’ seam.  

MMU Releases Summer Report

SPP’s Marketing Monitoring Unit has released its quarterly State of the Market Report for the 2024 summer. The report, covering June through August, indicates day-ahead and real-time prices dropped during the season, driven predominantly by lower gas prices. 

Day-ahead prices decreased 17%, from $35/MWh in 2023 to $29/MWh in 2024. Real-time prices also fell 17%, from an average of $32/MWh in 2023 to $27/MWh in 2024. 

The system’s average hourly load was 3% above 2023, while the peak hourly load was down 3% compared to 2023. 

Wind resources accounted for 30% of SPP’s total generation during the summer. A year ago, wind was 24% of the generation mix. Coal generation fell from 34 to 28%.