SPP assuaged potential Markets+ participants that FERC's deficiency filing and other recent developments have not hindered its commitment to Western expansion.

The integration of Markets+ with the Western Resource Adequacy Program would be among a handful of key reliability benefits of SPP’s Western day-ahead offering, according to an “issue alert” published by 10 entities that backed development of the market.

SPP directors and regulators have approved the grid operator’s first winter planning reserve margin, endorsing a base PRM that is 3 percentage points higher than many of its utilities wanted.

Governance should be a “key consideration” for the West in the competition between day-ahead electricity markets because the outcome potentially affects $25 billion a year in energy transactions, according to a new “issue alert.”

SPP’s Markets+ hit a snag after FERC issued a deficiency letter outlining 16 problems the RTO must address in the tariff it filed for the proposed Western day-ahead market in March.

The Bonneville Power Administration is ramping up its engagement with the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative, an executive with the federal power agency said.

SPP attempted to allay concerns about its ability to dispatch power among various Western regions during a webinar intended to illustrate its experience with seams management.