Members who responded to a PJM survey are about equally divided over the preferred meeting site for the Markets and Reliability and Members committees.
About 39% of those responding said they thought future meetings should be held at PJM’s Conference and Training Center in Valley Forge, while 36% favored remaining at Wilmington’s Chase Center. Another 13% chose a “hybrid” with meetings split between the two venues. Two states and 62 of the RTO’s 920 members responded.
“I don’t know how [statistically] significant this is,” Old Dominion Electric Cooperative’s Ed Tatum said of the survey results during a Members Committee discussion Thursday. Pepco Holdings Inc.’s Gloria Godson agreed, saying she was unaware the poll had been conducted.
The poll was sent to the MRC and MC distribution groups. Dave Anders, PJM director of stakeholder affairs, said the respondents included most of those that regularly participate in stakeholder meetings.
For Valley Forge
CEO Terry Boston made a pitch for Valley Forge, noting its proximity to PJM staff. Ruth Ann Price, deputy Public Advocate for Delaware, responded by noting the number of PJM staffers in attendance. “Access to staff is, with all due respect, specious,” she said.
David Hastings, of Market Interconnection Consulting Services in Illinois, said he preferred Valley Forge because it had more dining options than Wilmington and thus was a better locale for evening meetings with other out-of-town members.
For Wilmington
Some other out-of-town stakeholders said they preferred the Chase Center, which is about a mile from Wilmington’s Amtrak station.
Greg Pakela of DTE Energy said he flies from Michigan to Baltimore-Washington International Airport because it is much cheaper than flying into Philadelphia. The Amtrak from BWI to Wilmington takes about an hour. “The Amtrak access is huge,” Pakela said. Valley Forge does not have easy mass transit access.
Tatum said he prefers Wilmington for the two senior committee meetings. “I think we have a better opportunity to get [members’] senior executives here,” he said. Tatum also said members should consider returning the Market Implementation, Planning and Operating committees to Wilmington, where they were conducted until the CTC was opened in 2012.
The venue question was rekindled after the MRC and MC meetings were temporarily moved to Valley Forge due to highway construction in Wilmington. (See PJM Members Split over MRC/MC Meeting Site.)
“What about D.C. or Baltimore or points south, or even Ohio?” asked Dominion’s Lisa Moerner, who is based in Richmond, Va.
Anders said the RTO had conducted meetings around its footprint several years ago. “We found we had the same people coming to the meetings when they were in Columbus or Chicago and the same people on the phone,” Anders said. “We had very little difference.”
No Decision
With the two sides far apart — one member observed there was less consensus on this subject than on capacity market rules — Members Committee Chairman Dana Horton cut off the debate. “We’ll continue the discussion next month,” he said.
