A federal judge in Southern California declined to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that CAISO unjustly deprived the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) of its full export rights on a transmission line linking the utility’s balancing authority area (BAA) with the ISO.
U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Battaglia on Monday ruled that IID’s suit had “sufficiently alleged monopolistic conduct that threatens competition” and directed the utility to file an amended claim addressing deficiencies within three weeks.
Salton Sea Source: Imperial Irrigation District
“Specifically, by depriving IID of its expanded [maximum import capability], generators of renewable energy located within IID’s BAA who cannot interconnect directly with the CAISO grid cannot compete with other generators for the business of load-serving entities located in or through the CAISO grid,” Battaglia wrote.
IID’s suit contends that — through a series of memos and public statements from 2011 to 2014 — CAISO “induced” the publicly owned utility to perform $30 million in upgrades to Path 42, one of two transmission lines connecting IID with the ISO. CAISO estimated that the improvements would increase IID’s maximum import capability (MIC) into the ISO from 462 MW to 1,400 MW. The upgrades were put in service in January 2015.
In July 2014, CAISO downgraded IID’s future “expanded MIC” to its previous level, citing the closure of the San Onofre nuclear generating station as the reason for the decision. That move came after IID had already begun work on the upgrades. At the same time, the ISO said that other network additions — although not IID’s upgrades — would restore future flows out of the IID area by up to 1,000 MW, extra capacity that CAISO reserved for itself.
Skeptical of the claim that San Onofre’s closure was the basis for downgrading IID’s MIC, the utility initiated an investigation revealing that CAISO had miscalculated the flows on one of its own transmission lines — a misstep that IID alleges stemmed from the ISO violating its own operating procedures. A correct calculation would have restored the utility’s expanded MIC to 1,400 MW, IID argued.
IID contends that elimination of the expanded MIC prompted renewable energy developers to bypass the utility’s system to directly connect with the ISO, denying IID “significant revenue” from transmission services. IID further alleged that CAISO’s action was part of broader strategy to “further its monopolistic position” by forcing the utility to join the ISO.
While the court dismissed IID’s breach of tariff and federal antitrust claims, it let stand claims against CAISO for breach of contract, conversion, unjust enrichment and restitution.
“The court finds CAISO’s multiple public statements from 2011 through 2013 acknowledging the Path 42 project and the expected increase to IID’s MIC are sufficient to support, at this stage of the litigation, an inference that CAISO implicitly assented to the alleged contract, namely, that CAISO would increase IID’s MIC in exchange for IID’s upgrades to its side of Path 42,” Battaglia wrote.
The court also affirmed its jurisdiction over the proceeding.
“While it is true that transmission of electric energy in interstate commerce is generally a matter of federal concern, FERC simply has no jurisdiction over the transmission facilities at issue here, namely, IID’s facilities, because FERC’s jurisdiction extends only to ‘public utilities,’” Battaglia wrote — noting that, as a municipal utility, IID did not fit the definition of the term.
“IID is pleased that the case against CAISO can now move forward,” IID General Manager Kevin Kelley said. “There is no doubt that the district, its renewable energy generators and ultimately its ratepayers have been harmed by the state’s grid operator in denying transmission access to IID’s balancing area.”
CAISO said it disagreed with the court’s ruling that it has jurisdiction over IID’s remaining claims. “We believe these claims are likewise completely without merit, and we expect that they will be dismissed by the court as further proceedings unfold,” CAISO said in a statement.
Arizona Public Service and Puget Sound Energy have moved a step closer to linking up with CAISO’s Energy Imbalance Market.
The ISO on Aug. 1 commenced the operations testing phase to prepare the companies for full entry into the real-time market this fall. Over the next two months, the two utilities will operate in the market under real conditions, although their transactions will not become financially binding until Oct. 1.
The testing period will enable grid operators, system engineers and market managers to verify that systems are working as planned, CAISO said.
Unlike an RTO, the EIM does not require transmission-owning members to turn over operational control of their balancing authority areas (BAAs). Generator participants are also allowed to bid real-time energy into the market on a voluntary basis; there is no must-offer rule.
A recent CAISO report said the EIM has accrued $88.2 million in benefits to its participants since the market commenced operation in November 2014. (See EIM Report Shows Continued Growth in CAISO Exports.) Berkshire Hathaway Energy’s NV Energy and PacifiCorp are currently the only utilities participating in the market. Portland General Electric is scheduled to join in October 2018, followed by Idaho Power in spring 2019.
“The addition of APS and PSE will create more opportunities to produce additional benefits, including improved integration of renewable energy,” CAISO CEO Steve Berberich said in a statement.
APS serves about 1.2 million customers in Arizona and operates nearly 6,000 miles of transmission. A 2015 EIM benefits study by consulting firm Energy and Environmental Economics (E3) assumed the utility would maintain about 2,500 MW of transfer capacity with CAISO and another 600 MW with the PacifiCorp East BAA. The utility has no direct links with NV Energy.
The E3 study also determined that EIM membership would help APS lower costs by $7 million to $18.1 million, including $1 million to $3.2 million from the reduced need to maintain flexibility reserves — the type of capacity required to quickly firm up variable output from renewable resources. Implementation costs were estimated at $13 million to $19 million.
PSE serves about 1.1 million electricity customers in Washington state and operates about 2,600 miles of transmission, with a 1,600-MW import capability to compensate for a shortage of generation resources.
But the utility also has a surplus of flexible capacity, “which is probably why we’re joining the EIM,” Phillip Popoff, PSE manager of resource planning, told the Infocast California Energy Summit in May. The utility expects to realize annual benefits of $18 million to $30 million, with start-up costs estimated at about $14 million.
EIM start-up costs include metering upgrades to enable generating plants to capture data at five-minute increments, new market software, business process changes and Open Access Transmission Tariff revisions.
Both utilities will additionally incur ongoing costs of $3.5 million to $4 million a year, which includes fees paid to the ISO to manage the market.
Xcel Energy CEO Ben Fowke said last week that executives are sharpening their pencils after the company failed to meet analysts’ second-quarter expectations.
“We have taken action to reduce [operations and maintenance] expenses,” Fowke told analysts Aug. 3. “As a result, we are confident in our ability to deliver ongoing earnings solidly within our 2016 guidance range” of $2.12 to $2.27/share.
Xcel reported second-quarter earnings of $196.8 million ($0.39/share), compared with $197 million ($0.39/share) a year ago. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters were expecting a penny more ($0.40/share).
Sales were $2.5 billion, lower than the $2.53 billion forecast because of what the company called “some unfavorable weather.” Xcel’s sales for the same period last year were $2.52 billion.
Xcel reported several positive regulatory developments in the eight states in which it operates and touted the proposed 600-MW Rush Creek wind farm in Colorado as an affordable step toward decarbonizing its generating fleet.
“You basically are buying wind at a price point less than you can lock in natural gas reserves,” Fowke said. “So, that’s a pretty compelling story for customers and, I think, investors alike.”
According to the American Wind Energy Association, Xcel is the country’s top-ranked utility wind provider, with 6,545 MW of wind capacity owned or under contract as of the end of 2015. The company has reduced coal’s share of its fuel mix from 56% to 43% since 2005, while wind increased from 3% to 17%.
Fowke said the company expects to add more wind.
“MISO is a big footprint and so, I mean, I certainly think from a reliability standpoint … you can handle more wind … and it’s pretty economically compelling right now,” he said, according to a transcript by Seeking Alpha. “In Colorado, where we’re not part of an RTO, we have experienced wind as high as I think 65% of our load in any particular time, and we’ve managed to integrate it very well. And part of that is we’ve developed some of the most sophisticated wind forecasting software in the business, and it’s helping us be more efficient with wind. So [there are] very little curtailments in our wind portfolio; we’re pretty proud of that.”
The company’s shares closed Friday at $42.66, down $1.07 (2.51%) since the earnings announcement.
Minneapolis-based Xcel has operations in the Dakotas, New Mexico, Texas, Wisconsin and Michigan.
MISO promised last week to review a plan that could end the system support resource agreement for White Pine Unit 1 in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
American Transmission Co. said MISO could eliminate the need for the 40-MW generator by revising ATC’s system operating guide and making a temporary two-radial reconfiguration of its transmission system, returning it to pre-1998 conditions. ATC said its solution — details of which haven’t yet been made public — could remain in place until either new generation or new transmission are built.
White Pine Source: P.M. Power Group
The Michigan Agency for Energy supported ATC’s plan, saying it would save Upper Peninsula ratepayers $7.3 million annually in SSR payments.
“I applaud the problem-solving that led to this solution. I wished all stakeholders had gotten more warning early on so there would have been time to develop and implement this solution before costs started to go up and litigation was needed,” said Valerie Brader, executive director of the agency.
Brader also sent a letter to MISO, urging that the grid operator accept ATC’s proposal “without delay,” as it would not result in Tariff revisions. Bader also criticized the “poor condition” of White Pine Unit 1 and noted its six- to 12-hour cold start time.
ATC spokeswoman Anne Spaltholz said the company is working with MISO on the details of the proposals. The RTO has committed to reviewing ATC’s plan during the Aug. 9 meeting of the West Technical Study Task Force.
FERC has final say in the termination of SSR agreements. If an alternate solution isn’t identified, the 60-year-old White Pine plant will continue SSR operations until 2020.
ALJ Orders Refunds for Presque Isle SSR
In a related case, FERC Administrative Law Judge Michael Haubner issued a 37-page initial decision on July 25 (ER14-1242-006, et al.) concluding that Michigan ratepayers were overcharged by Wisconsin Electric Power Co. (WEPCo) for SSR payments on the 344-MW Presque Isle coal plant in Marquette, Mich., in 2014 and early 2015. The judge says $17 million in refunds plus interest are in order; final say rests with the commission.
The ruling came three months after FERC decided that the SSR rate schedules for the Presque Isle, Escanaba and White Pines power plants were appropriate. (See FERC Upholds 3 MISO SSR Cost Allocations in Upper Peninsula.) The Presque Isle and Escanaba SSRs were terminated in 2015.
Brader blamed MISO for the overages, saying the RTO failed to perform due diligence. “MISO blindly accepted numbers without reviewing their reasonableness, resulting in the state and other interested parties having to challenge the expenses through costly proceedings at FERC,” she said.
In May, MISO asked FERC for permission to revise its SSR procedure to require generation owners to provide 26 weeks’ notice of plant suspensions or retirements. The RTO also wants to relax some confidentiality provisions around SSR agreements. (See “MISO Planning Confidentiality, Notification Changes to Attachment Y Procedure,” MISO Planning Advisory Committee Briefs.)
Cloverland Electric Cooperative, a Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.-based nonprofit that has the highest Presque Isle surcharge at $11.7 million, welcomed the ruling, but said it doesn’t fix the larger SSR problem.
“The judge proposed a refund, but for Cloverland members, this just reduces the costs we will have to pay over the next several months. The judge’s decision is one positive step in the legal process that allows the case to continue,” Cloverland CEO Dan Dasho said in a statement.
Dasho also criticized a 2008 exemption to Michigan’s 10% retail choice cap that allows Upper Peninsula iron ore mines to choose their power suppliers. The decision by iron ore provider Cliffs to leave the Presque Isle plant for another generator is the reason WEPCo decided to close the plant in 2014. Dasho said if the law is not changed, the mines could “leave again,” leaving Upper Peninsula ratepayers responsible for a new $300 million natural gas cogeneration plant planned by Chicago-based Invenergy on the Cliffs mining site.
“Our senators and representative supports our position on this, but the governor’s administration is refusing to have this exemption removed and finally protect all the ratepayers in the Upper Peninsula,” Dasho said.
CAISO last week provided stakeholders an update on its efforts to address concerns that the Energy Imbalance Market is not properly accounting for the impact of emissions from dispatching out-of-state resources into California — what the state’s Air Resources Board calls “carbon leakage.”
“We are working collaboratively with the ARB to address their identified issues with greenhouse gas accounting in the EIM,” Mark Rothleder, CAISO vice president for market quality and renewable integration, said during an Aug. 4 Regional Issues Forum held at Idaho Power headquarters in Boise.
Leakage occurs when California’s emissions program logs a reduction, despite the fact that no actual decrease in atmospheric GHGs has occurred based on the effects of the secondary dispatch.
The board’s concerns focus on how the EIM’s least-cost dispatch model attributes balancing energy from a low-emitting out-of-state resource to CAISO, while not accounting for the secondary dispatch of another higher-emitting resource that serves external demand that could have been covered by the first resource absent the market.
California’s Air Resources Board (ARB) is seeking to capture the impact of higher-emitting resources being dispatched in the EIM to cover for zero-emissions power dispatched into CAISO. Fort Churchill Generating Station Photo Source: NVEnergy
The cleaner resource is “deemed delivered” to California, and the cap-and-trade system issues an emissions-compliance obligation to the scheduling coordinator for the resource, the ARB has noted.
“However, in certain instances, the full transfers that support balancing load to California are not identified and accounted for in the cap-and-trade program, resulting in emissions leakage,” the board wrote in a recent staff report proposing changes to the state’s cap-and-trade system.
CAISO is considering a range of options to help the ARB account for the emissions stemming from secondary dispatch.
The favored option: calculating the emissions from the secondary dispatch and assigning the GHG obligation to ISO load responsible for imbalances. However, this option could call the ISO’s dispatch decisions into question, Rothleder said.
Other options include requiring a minimum GHG bid for low-emission resources based on a system-emission rate or creating a hurdle rate for EIM transfers into the ISO. Both would put clean out-of-state resources at a disadvantage to equivalent resources inside the ISO.
The ISO also floated the idea of ARB lowering the electricity sector’s emissions caps or retiring GHG allowances by the estimated amount of secondary dispatch effects. Under California’s cap-and trade system, load-serving entities are issued a set amount of allowances each year subject to a declining annual cap.
One unlikely proposal is to have CAISO become a regulated party under cap-and-trade and produce all the emissions-compliance instruments associated with EIM dispatch.
“This is not high on our list as the way to go,” Rothleder said.
He pointed out that any solution would apply only to the EIM, and not to an expanded ISO. Still, the outcome could inform GHG accounting under regionalization.
CAISO seeks to issue a paper on the subject within a month and is targeting a fall meeting for further discussion. Any changes to GHG accounting in the EIM are slated to go into effect in January 2018.
MISO is considering whether the transfer limit of 876 MW between MISO South and MISO North used in this year’s Planning Resource Auction should be adjusted for the 2017/18 capacity auction and if resources supplying the capacity will be delivered on a firm or non-firm basis.
MISO posed several questions to stakeholders at the Aug. 3 Resource Adequacy Subcommittee (RASC) meeting:
Should the starting limit for the sub-regional power balance constraint (SRPBC) prior to accounting for firm transmission service be 2,500 MW or 1,000 MW?
In treating firm transmission service sold across the contract path, should SPP:
Differentiate for firm transmission that is or is not associated with a capacity sale in another market?
Consider the ability of a transmission customer to redirect transmission service (i.e., redirect sink from PJM to MISO North)?
Treat pseudo-tied resources differently?
Under MISO’s settlement with SPP over the use of its transmission system, flows between the North and South regions are considered non-firm. The agreement “explicitly did not provide firm contract path or firm flow entitlements,” according to MISO.
MISO South region represented in orange.
MISO’s 2016/17 PRA enforced a limit of 876 MW for South-to-North transfers. The initial limit of 2,500 MW was downgraded to 876 MW after MISO subtracted firm exporting reservations that had completed a feasibility analysis.
“We’re trying to achieve an efficient but reliable PRA outcome,” explained Kevin Sherd, MISO director of forward operations planning. “If we approve 2,500 MW and can only get 500 MW delivered due to congestion, that’s a problem. The higher the number goes from South to North or Zone 1 to Zone 6,” the higher the risk, he said.
“I’m not arguing one or the other today. I’m teeing this up for a September discussion,” Sherd said.
Currently MISO allows two opportunities for resources to participate in the PRA as firm capacity: as a network resource interconnection service (NRIS) or as an energy resource interconnection service (ERIS) with a firm point-to-point transmission reservation.
MISO Manager of Resource Adequacy Coordination Laura Rauch said the RTO completes an annual deliverability test on NRIS generators to make sure they are able to deliver power to network load. ERIS generators are analyzed via an annual long-term transmission rights feasibility test and through the expansion planning process.
ITC Holdings’ Ray Kershaw suggested that opening up participation for generators without firm rights might allow some non-firm external generators to participate in the PRA. “You’re opening up a whole lot here,” Kershaw said.
Dynegy’s Mark Volpe asked if MISO could use data from this summer to establish anticipated power flow needs to make a more educated decision.
Sherd said multiple days this summer could provide data for an estimated transfer limit and said MISO would bring numbers back to the next RASC meeting.
Other stakeholders asked what the Independent Market Monitor thought of changing the transfer limit.
IMM staffer Michael Chiasson said the Monitor will review MISO’s questions but declined to comment on the transfer limit. The Monitor’s State of the Market report recommended improving the modeling on transfers by introducing a derating factor representing the probability that MISO neighbors will request a reduction from the 2,500-MW transfer limit because of an emergency. (See Monitor’s State of the Market Report Seeks Changes to MISO ELMP.)
Stakeholder input on the matter is requested before the Aug. 31-Sept. 1 RASC meeting. MISO hopes to adopt a solution for the 2017/18 PRA.
MISO Inserting More Deadlines into PRA Timeline
MISO wants more official deadlines for market participants worked into the PRA timeline, Manager of Resource Adequacy John Harmon said.
The RTO is proposing to attach explicit due dates to multiple data submittals made before the auction, including quarterly Generating Availability Data System figures, annual output data for run-of-river and biomass resources, load forecast revisions after Nov. 1 and the unforced capacity value confirmation.
“These [requirements] aren’t new, but we’ve never had definitive dates. No new action is required … but a lot of market participants said, ‘I didn’t know you needed this by this date,’” Harmon said. “We had trouble during the last auction working with folks to make sure deadlines were met.”
The RTO will also attach consequences to missed deadlines, Harmon said, but not before MISO Client Relations reaches out to market participants about delinquent information. After that, MISO will process late submissions in monthly “batches” rather than on an individual basis and could deny requests for late submissions altogether, possibly disqualifying the market participant from offering in the PRA.
SPP and MISO are inching closer to agreement on a second joint transmission study on their seams, though they continue to disagree how “targeted” a targeted study should be.
The two grid operators have agreed to conduct another transmission study this year, using the carbon-constrained scenarios in SPP’s 2017 Integrated Transmission Planning 10-Year Assessment and MISO’s 2016 Transmission Expansion Plan as starting points.
The study, to be completed in the first quarter of 2017, will use the needs identified in the regional studies to develop solutions that benefit both RTOs. It will model the years 2020, 2025 and 2030; SPP will have to create a model for 2030, which is not included in the 2017 ITP10.
MISO prefers limiting the study to the seams between it and the Integrated System, which joined SPP last October, while SPP favors looking at a broader geographic area.
Staff shared the draft scope with the RTOs’ Interregional Planning Stakeholder Advisory Committee on Aug. 2, with SPP’s Seams Steering Committee again taking up the issue Aug. 3.
MISO staff said it preferred to focus on process improvements this year, but it did propose that a set of five needs — three belonging to SPP, two to MISO — be included in the joint study. SPP suggested 10 regional needs, eight in its footprint and two in MISO’s, that it said would “provide the most value to be evaluated” in the Coordinated System Plan study.
Time Best Spent
MISO agreed to a joint study this year only after a May meeting of its Planning Advisory Committee. (See “MISO Rethinks Coordinated Study with SPP,” MISO Planning Advisory Committee Briefs.)
“We have to ask ourselves, where is our collective time best spent?” said MISO’s Eric Thoms, manager of planning coordination and strategy, in arguing against a broader study. “The 2014-15 [study] took three extra months. It took a herculean effort to finish … that’s the most diplomatic way to define it.”
“My impression was [MISO has] already decided what they want to do, and it’s up to us to convince them otherwise. I don’t like that position,” SSC Chair Paul Malone, of the Nebraska Public Power District, said at Wednesday’s meeting.
The IPSAC conference call also left some SPP stakeholders questioning the stakeholder meeting process. The Wind Coalition’s Steve Gaw expressed concern that the decision to use a targeted scope was made prior to the joint stakeholder meeting.
“I thought the [IPSAC] call was about defining the scope,” Gaw said at the SSC meeting. “It confused me that a decision has already been made about [the scope] being targeted.”
David Kelley, SPP’s director of interregional relations, agreed with Gaw. “The way you described it should have been the way to work,” he said. “We bring issues to the table, [and] we decide if they’re enough to warrant a study.”
Staff set an Aug. 24 deadline for stakeholders to submit comments on the draft scope. MISO has another PAC meeting scheduled Aug. 17 that could further clarify the study’s final scope.
The IPSAC has tentatively selected Sept. 7 to finalize the scope with stakeholders.
Task Force to Look at Non-Order 1000 Regional Cost Allocation
In a related matter, the SSC voted 8-5 to create a task force to revise a proposed business practice for regional cost allocation of seams projects outside FERC’s Order 1000 process. The task force will use a white paper that has already been through the stakeholder process to document the policy. The group will be chaired by Oklahoma Gas & Electric’s Jake Langthorn.
MISO will monitor maximum generation procedures as a result of pricing errors during a late July max gen warning, the RTO’s Kevin Larson said at last week’s Market Subcommittee meeting.
Jeff Bladen, executive director of market services, said pricing corrections for the multiple scheduled resources and one emergency resource were “relatively small” and represented less than $1/MWh. (See “June Energy Prices Up Across Footprint; New Emergency Pricing Encounters Snag in July,” MISO Informational Forum Briefs.)
David Sapper of Customized Energy Solutions asked if MISO could have withdrawn the max gen warning.
Rob Benbow, MISO’s senior director of systemwide operations, said the RTO forecast that high loads would persist throughout the day. “It’s one of those things where you’ve got data saying one thing, but … the load did not materialize,” Benbow said.
In the coming months, Bladen said MISO would review the performance of the new emergency offer floors.
Task Team to Take on 5-Minute Settlement Issue
MISO has charted a course for achieving five-minute settlement calculations with the creation of a six-month-long task team.
John Weissenborn, MISO’s director of market services, said the task team will discuss which day-ahead, real-time and financial transmission rights charges might be impacted, and identify changes needed for the Tariff and Business Practices Manuals. It will then shape the subsequent compliance filing due this winter.
Weissenborn said MISO hopes to have five-minute settlement language completed by December. The RTO expects five-minute settlements of energy resources and operating reserves in place by January 2018.
Currently, MISO’s real-time settlement occurs with an hourly average price while real-time operating reserve settlements are already conducted on a five-minute basis.
FERC Order 825, issued in June, directed RTOs to align settlement and dispatch intervals in real-time markets by January 2017.
However, MISO said even after Order 825 is implemented, interchange transactions will continue be settled at the 15-minute intervals that were instituted last June, as the settlement is performed using five-minute prices.
Weissenborn said MISO will have to explain the continued used of the 15-minute interchange transaction settlements in the compliance filing to FERC. “I think we’ll be successful in explaining that,” he said.
Brian Garnett of Duke Energy asked if the RTO expects companies to provide information on a five-minute basis.
Weissenborn said MISO “spent a lot of time talking with SPP on their implementation.” He said SPP experiences roughly 10% of market participants reporting at five-minute intervals and uses a curve fitting to calculate the rest. Weissenborn said most companies within SPP continue to report meter information hourly.
MISO Wants Future Control in Flow-Control Resources
Beibei Li, a senior operations engineer, said MISO is evaluating the need for optimization of flow-control resources to follow a real-time dispatch target.
MISO says its flow-control resources “are not directly represented in the market dispatch process” and that its inability to control them leads to inefficiency in the physical flow. This inefficiency, the RTO said, could impact AC system dispatch and “introduce unnecessary losses and congestion across the surrounding AC system.”
The RTO envisions increased use of several types of flow-control resources in the future, including HVDC lines, phase shifters, variable frequency transformers and series compensation flexible AC transmission system devices, designed to increase control and power transfer capability on the network. (See MISO Grid Meets ‘Big Data’.)
Li said MISO wants to be able to optimize its fleet of flow-control resources by the fourth quarter of 2018.
MISO staff plan to return to the October MSC meeting to deliver an update with project objectives and rough work plan.
Real-Time Offer Enhancements Start Time Delayed, Storage Assignments Divvied Up
Bladen reported that MISO’s real-time offer enhancements project will be delayed more than a month while MISO runs additional software testing.
The project, which will allow market participants to make overrides to real-time offers in MISO’s portal, is now scheduled for an early September go-live date. MISO was expecting to have the project completed by the end of July.
Although real-time offer enhancements are on hold, energy storage work is moving ahead. Bladen said MISO has divvied up tasks related to creating a storage policy.
Clarifying a storage interconnection definition has been referred to the Planning Advisory Committee and Interconnection Process Task Force. The Resource Adequacy Subcommittee will tackle how behind-the-meter generation can participate in the capacity market and decide how a stored energy resource capable of providing four hours of continuous power can participate in the regulation market.
Bladen also said MISO has had a low response rate to its annual customer opinion survey. MISO sent out 1,200 requests for responses to market participants. Bladen said just 9% of companies had responded as of Aug. 2. “That’s quite low, even at this stage in the process. We would very much like to get above the 9% we’ve got so far,” he said.
The survey window was extended by a week and is open until Aug. 12.
FERC last week certified a settlement between Entergy Services and the Louisiana Public Service Commission in the corporation’s ninth annual bandwidth filing under its system agreement, saying it “resolves all issues of dispute” (ER15-1826).
Entergy filed the settlement in March. In April, FERC staff filed supporting comments and Louisiana PSC staff approved the agreement, which had been set for hearing and settlement procedures in October. (See FERC Sets Hearings for Entergy’s Cost Allocations.)
Entergy’s Nine Mile 6 Plant in Westwego, La. Source: Entergy
At issue was Entergy’s exclusion of its Arkansas subsidiary from the allocation of its operating companies’ 2014 production costs. The corporation’s cost allocation under its system agreement has been regularly challenged by regulators since it took effect in 2007.
Entergy’s six operating companies essentially operate as one system, although each has different costs. Payments are made annually by Entergy’s low-cost operating companies to the highest-cost company in the system, using a “bandwidth” remedy that ensures no company has production costs more than 11% above or below the system average.
Public Policy, Market Efficiency Theme of PJM’s Grid 20/20
Public policy goals and market efficiency are the topics of PJM’s upcoming Grid 20/20 conference, to be held Aug. 18 in Audubon, Pa., the RTO announced.
Panelists will explore how market rules can further public policy goals without distorting market principles. Discussions will include changing the minimum offer price rule, restructuring the process of procurement and other “outside the box” alternatives.
Constellation, Direct Energy Vie for Residential Customers
Exelon subsidiary Constellation has begun offering residential electricity supply plans in Delmarva Power territory. The company is featuring fixed-rate plans of one or two years with gift cards and no enrollment charge.
Also this summer, the state declared Direct Energy the “electric retail supplier exclusively contracted by the state of Delaware.”
In addition to lower fixed prices, Direct Energy gives residents who enroll a free Nest Learning Thermostat and a six-month heating and cooling equipment protection plan.
Louisville Gas & Electric and Kentucky Utilities have filed a request with the Public Service Commission to start a community solar network. The solar facility would be established in Shelby County on a subscription-based system, allowing residential, business and industrial customers to join and receive solar energy credits.
The PPL-owned utilities said the site is big enough for a 4-MW facility, but plans call for it to be built in 500-kW sections, based on customer demand. Construction would begin when the first section is fully subscribed.
Hundreds in Financial Limbo as Solar Credits Fade Away
Hundreds of rooftop solar users have been thrown into financial limbo after the state’s Department of Revenue warned in July that it had run out of money to fund tax credits intended to promote installations.
Lawmakers decided last year to cap the solar tax credit program in the face of worsening budget woes. Legislators also widened the cap to cover everyone who purchased solar in 2015, including those who bought their systems well before any changes were proposed.
The solar tax credit is among the most generous in the country, covering up to 50% of the first $25,000 spent to install a rooftop solar system, or up to $12,500 total. It can be combined with a 30% federal tax credit for extra savings. The program had a 2017 sunset, but lawmakers went a step further last year and capped credits for purchased systems at $25 million.
Kinder Morgan surveyors are mapping the route of its proposed 2-mile natural gas pipeline, part of the three-stage $86 million Connecticut Expansion Project, through a state forest.
The state Department of Conservation and Recreation granted permission for surveying and marking the pipeline’s right of way through Otis State Forest. No permission for land clearing has been granted as the developers await FERC approval, and legal challenges to the project continue.
Opponents argue that the old-growth forest is protected by the state constitution, as the land was acquired by the state for conservation a decade ago at a cost of $5.2 million.
Gov. Charlie Baker on Monday signed a bipartisan bill that requires utilities to obtain 9,450 GWh annually of clean energy from large-scale Canadian hydropower, onshore wind power and solar, and 1,600 MW of offshore wind from developers who currently hold federal leases.
“Massachusetts is always at the forefront of adopting innovative clean energy solutions, and this legislation will allow us to build on that legacy and embrace increased amounts of renewable energy, including hydropower,” Baker said. The bill was passed a week ago in the waning hours of the recently concluded legislative session. (See Massachusetts Bill Boosts Offshore Wind, Canadian Hydro.)
Attorney General Bill Schuette says Enbridge Energy’s application to install more pipeline support anchors is evidence that the company’s Line 5 pipelines under the Mackinac Straits are currently in violation of safety standards, which require pipe-support anchors at least every 75 feet.
Enbridge recently submitted a request for a permit to install up to 19 additional anchors. The company says it informed state officials of the need for more support after a June inspection.
The company has been under heightened scrutiny since a 2010 pipeline break spilled more than 800,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River. In July, it agreed to pay $177 million to settle claims in connection with that spill.
The state Supreme Court last week unanimously ruled to block a referendum from appearing on the Nov. 8 general election ballot that could have restored favorable net metering rates to customers. The court ruled that the way the question was formed was “not only inaccurate and misleading, but also argumentative.”
The referendum question has been seen as a battle between NV Energy and the solar industry. The state, after heavy lobbying from NV Energy, set lower net metering rates this year. Many solar companies announced they were leaving the state, saying the new rates effectively suffocated the solar industry there.
Solar advocates expressed disappointment in the ruling, but said they would pursue alternative strategies. “We look forward to crafting strong solar policies that give Nevadans the freedom to power their homes and communities with clean solar energy,” said Erin McCann, campaign manager for Bring Back Solar.
PUC Adopts New Energy Efficiency Resource Standard
The Public Utilities Commission approved an Energy Efficiency Resource Standard, creating a framework for achieving cost-effective energy savings.
Programs will be required to demonstrate they are cost-effective and satisfy goals laid out in the standard. According to the PUC, the standard will help the state meet its 10-year State Energy Strategy goals.
During the first three-year period of the EERS, the cumulative goal for electric savings will be 3.1% of delivered 2014 kilowatt-hour sales, with interim annual savings goals, by 2021. Programs under the standard will begin on Jan. 1, 2018.
Public Regulation Commission staff have expressed doubt about the public benefits of Public Service Company of New Mexico’s plans to install advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), while eliminating the jobs of the 125 employees who monitor them.
Charles Gunter, accounting bureau chief for the PRC’s utility division, said the commission staff support the concept of advanced metering, but PNM’s projected costs to replace about 531,000 electricity meters “are uncertain and indicate that the AMI project would not produce sustained savings, compared to the existing metering system, until 2024.”
The attorney general’s office also submitted testimony from an expert witness, Columbia Group President Andrea Crane, who said the project would result in a net cost of $12 million instead of the net savings of nearly $21 million that PNM claims.
The state toxicologist said he discussed with Gov. Pat McCrory the “scientifically untrue” health advisories the state released that downplayed the risk of well water contamination near Duke Energy plants, but the governor’s office strongly denied ever having that conversation.
State Toxicologist Kenneth Rudo testified in a deposition that state-issued health advisories saying the water was safe to drink were wrong and that he told McCrory and other state officials. Rudo, in a later interview with The Charlotte Observer, said he spoke with the governor by phone for about four minutes and said he advised that well owners should be warned of the risk, as an earlier state-issued comment had done. Instead, the state issued a statement saying tests showed well water met federal clean water standards.
“We don’t know why Ken Rudo lied under oath, but the governor absolutely did not take part in or request this call or meeting as he suggests,” Chief of Staff Thomas Stith said in a statement. Lawmakers passed legislation calling for Duke to provide clean drinking water to affected residents.
Opponents of a new $1 billion natural gas power plant lost their appeal to the Utilities Commission because they failed to post a nearly $100 million guarantee to cover potential construction delays.
The commission had approved the Ashville plant to take the place of a coal-fired facility run by Duke Energy.
The appeal was filed by NC WARN and the Climate Times.
Contractors are pumping about 7,500 cubic yards of grout into an abandoned underground lignite mine, part of a project conducted by the Abandoned Mine Lands Division of the Public Service Commission. The drilling and grouting project will prevent dangerous sinkholes from forming as a result of mine subsidence.
The cost of the work is covered by federal reclamation fees on active coal mines. The division has conducted two major and one minor project this year; since its start in the 1980s, it has conducted more than 100 reclamation projects, usually finishing four to 10 annually.
Wilton was the focal point for state lignite mining in the early 20th century.
Offshore Turbine Installation Starts at Block Island Project
Deepwater Wind has begun installation of the first offshore wind turbines in the U.S. at its project 3 miles off Block Island. The turbines will each rise 589 feet above the ocean’s surface.
The work kicked off a month-long push to complete construction of the 30-MW wind farm. Two months of testing will follow before full operation starts in the fall.
Deepwater has budgeted three days to put up each turbine, the company says. In Europe, where thousands of offshore wind turbines are in operation, the standard is a day and a half.
Natural Resources Board Buys Riverfront Land from Xcel
The Natural Resources Board last week approved the purchase of nearly 1,000 acres of riverfront property from Xcel Energy, which had planned to build a power plant on the site.
With the board’s approval, the state’s Department of Natural Resources will pay almost $2.1 million for 990 acres along the Lower Chippewa River southwest of Eau Claire. The property includes 18,000 feet of shoreline and a section of the Chippewa River Trail.
Xcel was planning to use the site for a nuclear power plant that it never built. The utility still owns just more than 3,400 acres of nearby riverfront land.
University Receives Xcel Grant for Microgrid Research
The University of St. Thomas has received a $2.1 million grant from Xcel Energy for microgrid research.
Engineering professor Greg Mowry said about $1.5 million of the grant will be used to construct a research facility and a 30- to 60-kW microgrid, with an accompanying solar array.
The initial goal is not to supply power to the university, though that may come later. The first phases of the project involve managing “dummy loads” and simulating different energy sources, such as a wind turbine “emulator” controlled by researchers and students.
Gov. Matt Mead appealed to the U.S. Interior Department to end its moratorium on new coal leases in a 76-page letter with 4,179 pages of attachments sent to Secretary Sally Jewell and Bureau of Land Management Director Neil Kornze.
“States like Wyoming, where coal is produced and environmental stewardship is a model for the nation, were not consulted and were caught by surprise,” Mead wrote. “Now, national revenues, energy users across the nation, coal miners and their families are at risk. The justification for this moratorium and the manner it was unveiled are unjustifiable.”
Mead said the moratorium, announced Jan. 15, is dramatically impacting jobs, energy security and energy independence, and that it specifically targets the state, the nation’s leader in coal production. The state produces roughly 40% of the nation’s coal, most of which is mined from federal land.
Public policy goals and market efficiency are the topics of PJM’s upcoming Grid 20/20 conference, to be held Aug. 18 in Audubon, Pa., the RTO announced.
Exelon subsidiary Constellation has begun offering residential electricity supply plans in Delmarva Power territory. The company is featuring fixed-rate plans of one or two years with gift cards and no enrollment charge.
Kinder Morgan surveyors are mapping the route of its proposed 2-mile natural gas pipeline, part of the three-stage $86 million Connecticut Expansion Project, through a state forest.
Attorney General Bill Schuette says Enbridge Energy’s application to install more pipeline support anchors is evidence that the company’s Line 5 pipelines under the Mackinac Straits are currently in violation of safety standards, which require pipe-support anchors at least every 75 feet.
The state Supreme Court last week unanimously ruled to block a referendum from appearing on the Nov. 8 general election ballot that could have restored favorable net metering rates to customers. The court ruled that the way the question was formed was “not only inaccurate and misleading, but also argumentative.”
The Public Utilities Commission approved an Energy Efficiency Resource Standard, creating a framework for achieving cost-effective energy savings.
Public Regulation Commission staff have expressed doubt about the public benefits of Public Service Company of New Mexico’s plans to install advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), while eliminating the jobs of the 125 employees who monitor them.
Opponents of a new $1 billion natural gas power plant lost their appeal to the Utilities Commission because they failed to post a nearly $100 million guarantee to cover potential construction delays.
Deepwater Wind has begun installation of the first offshore wind turbines in the U.S. at its project 3 miles off Block Island. The turbines will each rise 589 feet above the ocean’s surface.
The Natural Resources Board last week approved the purchase of nearly 1,000 acres of riverfront property from Xcel Energy, which had planned to build a power plant on the site.