Podcasts about southwest power pool

People in Power Episode 8: NewsData Reporter Roundtable! Looking to update your knowledge of emerging Western wholesale energy markets? This episode of People in Power features three experts on the topic, California Energy Markets Managing Editor Jason Fordney, Clearing Up Editor Steve Ernst and California Energy Markets Associate Editor and Southwest Editor Abigail Sawyer. They discuss both the California Independent System Operator's extended day-ahead market and the competing proposal from the Southwest Power Pool, Markets+. You can hear about the latest dynamics around the markets, from solving the thorny governance issue to the effectiveness of the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative to where the Bonneville Power Administration will land. This is a critical listen for anyone involved in Western energy markets! 

Keith Collins knows electricity markets. After a stint consulting for the New York Independent System Operator, he joined FERC in 2004. After that, he spent years working for the California ISO and the Southwest Power Pool. But it wasn't until he  joined the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) as vice president of commercial operations last summer that he started making waves. Unlike many electricity markets in the U.S., ERCOT is deregulated, and its grid is isolated from other systems. It drew a great deal of attention — and ire from some Texans — after a major grid failure during Winter Storm Uri back in 2021. But now, all eyes are on ERCOT as it turns to battery storage as a way to help meet surging demand for power. This week on With Great Power, Keith explains what makes ERCOT's approach to electricity different from other markets and how the incredible growth of solar generation and battery energy storage systems have changed the Texas grid. They also cover the role of ancillary services and look ahead to how ERCOT's energy mix will continue to evolve.With Great Power is a co-production of GridX and Latitude Studios.  Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or anywhere you get podcasts. For more reporting on the companies featured in this podcast, subscribe to Latitude Media's newsletter.Credits: Hosted by Brad Langley. Produced by Erin Hardick and Mary Catherine O'Connor. Edited by Anne Bailey. Original music and engineering by Sean Marquand. Stephen Lacey is executive editor. Sean Marquand composed the original theme song and mixed the show. The Grid X production team includes Jenni Barber, Samantha McCabe, and Brad Langley.

In the latest episode of People in Power, Abigail Sawyer and Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association CEO Duane Highley discuss  threading the needle to satisfy diverse interests across a multi-state territory and the G&T cooperative's decision to join the Southwest Power Pool's RTO West expansion. 

Antoine Lucas, Southwest Power Pool's VP of markets, talks with California Energy Markets Associate Editor Abigail Sawyer about waiting for federal approval of Markets+, SPP's day-ahead market offering for load-serving entities in the West. Further regulatory delays could have implications for Markets+, which is in direct competition with the California Independent System Operator's extended day-ahead market. That competition, Lucas says, is good for everyone. Listen to the conversation on the latest episode of NewsData's People in Power.

Kansas, in the heart of America's robust wind belt, has approved a new direct current transmission corridor to help speed the transition to cleaner energy. In this episode of Grid Talk, host Marty Rosenberg talks with Andrew French, the chairman of the Kansas Corporation Commission.“Kansas actually approved a permit for the Grain Belt Express DC line to extend all the way across our state and all the way to Indiana,” said French.It comes at a time of increased demand for energy - particularly non-carbon emitting sources. French acknowledges that navigating the regulatory and permitting process is difficult.“Right now, you're looking at a few years to get new generation online and it's a tough spot. You've got a lot of customers that want power.”“This is a complex industry even for developers that are very sophisticated. As they're developing a wind farm, a solar farm, some other generation source, it's really hard for them to anticipate how much it's going to cost for them to interconnect,” the Kansas regulator said. He's also optimistic about the future.“There are a lot of things moving in the direction of a successful energy transition. There are also a lot of things standing in the way or complications. There is of course, public sentiment that doesn't understand some of the reasons why we may have need to build new infrastructure and transition to different resources.”Andrew J. French was appointed to the KCC in2020. He has served as Chairperson since 2021.French currently serves as the Kansas representative to the Southwest Power Pool and regularly participates in various SPP stakeholder groups. He is also one of 10 state utility regulators selected to serve on the Joint Federal-State Task Force on Electric Transmission formed in 2021.Before his appointment to the KCC, French practiced law with a focus on energy policy and the regulation of utility rates and services. French has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Kansas and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Kansas School of Law.  

Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc. v. Southwest Power Pool, Inc.

Katherine Blunt joins Crystal Ball and Paul Dockery to discuss her reporting at the Wall Street Journal on the energy industry and her book, California Burning: The Fall of Pacific Gas and Electric--and What It Means for America's Power Grid.Matthew Schroettnig joins Conleigh Byers, Farhad Billimoria, and Paul Dockery for the rest of the episode to cover utility risks, load growth, and the current landscape of America's power grid.You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Share with friends that are energy enthusiasts, like us!03:13 - Short-to-Ground; a segment where we blow a fuse covering the newsEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a suite of standards to cut greenhouse gas emissions as well as toxic air pollution, water pollution, and land contamination from fossil fuel plantsBureau of Land Management (BLM) updated regulations on Broadband Authorization, Cost Recovery, and Vegetation Management for Fire Risk ManagementLetter from twenty-six entities from across the West to the Southwest Power Pool expressing interest in continuing the development of Markets+Portland General Electric is seeking approval for a new, 7.4 mile, 115 KV transmission lineSpot market power in the U.S.Wholesale spot prices for the National Electricity Market (NEM)Energy Information Administration's Natural Gas Weekly UpdateHedging and Tail Risk in Electricity Markets18:39 - Katherine Blunt joins Crystal Ball and Paul Dockery to discuss her reporting at the Wall Street Journal on the energy industry and her book, California Burning: The Fall of Pacific Gas and Electric--and What It Means for America's Power GridCalifornia Burning: The Fall of Pacific Gas and Electric--and What It Means for America's Power GridWildfires Make Utilities a Tricky Investment. Just Ask Warren Buffett.Big Tech's Latest Obsession Is Finding Enough Energy49:13 - Katherine Blunt's analogy; the grid is like a network of roads and highways51:08 - Updating our Priors1:07:20 - ESA (Energy System Analogies) World Cup Standings1:08:11 - Matt Schroettnig's analogy; electricity is like water in a biomePublic Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it's work to watch!

In the latest episode of the Energy West podcast, California Energy Markets Editor Jason Fordney speaks with Elliot Mainzer, president and CEO of the California Independent System Operator, in Part 1 of a wide-ranging interview about the California electricity grid, a wider Western day-ahead market, managing the huge influx of energy storage coming on to the CAISO grid, and CAISO's competition with Southwest Power Pool over a Western RTO. You won't want to miss this in-depth episode!

The news of Texas covered today includes: [Originally aired on 18 January 2024]Our Lone Star story of the day: Electrical engineer Ross Aten, engineering manager for a Texas electric cooperative that works on both the ERCOT and Southwest Power Pool grids, explains that the fundamental weakness of the ERCOT grid (and others) still exists and as long as it does, a very bad “new normal” for Texas will be conservation calls from ERCOT and real worry of being pushed into load shedding (where your power is turned off to preserve generation and the grid.)Aten explains why such such rolling load shedding is absolutely necessary to preserve the grid and generation facilities as well as why we are in the position of being very close to having to engage in such on a somewhat regular basis.Beyond argument is the fact that unreliable generation resources make up too much of a percentage of ERCOT grid capacity and that these subsidized resources are driving away private investment in building reliable, dispatchable power generation facility such as those powered by natural gas. [See ERCOT grid fact sheet here.]All one need do is see what happened during the danger hours on Monday and Tuesday morning, 15 and 16 January 2024. While wind generation was 28.6 percent of grid capacity it was only able to generate around 6.9 and 12.06 percent Monday and Tuesday respectively at 7:30 a.m. (much lower later in the day.) Solar was 0.00 and 0.05 percent respectively.Natural gas was fueling 67.22 percent of what was on the grid when its percentage of grid capacity, from the fact sheet, is only 41.8 percent of the ERCOT grid!To learn much more about how all operates with Ross Aten, visit:2/18/2021 – In-Depth on the Texas rolling blackoutsOur Lone Star story of the day is sponsored by Allied Compliance Services providing the best service in DOT, business and personal drug and alcohol testing since 1995.This is a very good follow-up story: It's Official: Winter is Becoming the New Summer by Brent Bennett, Ph.D.Listen on the radio, or station stream, at 5pm Central. Click for our radio and streaming affiliates.www.PrattonTexas.com

In today's episode, we're joined by a seasoned expert, David Applebaum of The Hawthorne Group. We will unpack the challenges of implementing renewable projects and the political campaigns that sometimes need to accompany them. David will share why developers must adopt a campaign-style approach to successfully engage with various communities and stakeholders, especially amidst the diverse local regulations and concerns. We'll touch on the power of traditional outreach methods, such as town meetings and door knocking, and new-school strategies, like social media, to engage communities effectively. Michael will explore renewables' real impacts on local economies and landscapes, acknowledging the concerns and emphasizing the benefits. At the same time, Noha will highlight developers' crucial role in respecting and engaging with communities to foster project success.Guest bio: David has nearly four decades of experience as a political and policy strategist with deep experience in state and local issues management in the public and private sectors and working with Regional Transmission Organizations in the Northeastern U.S. and Canada. In the private sector, David was Director of Business Development for Ballard Generation Systems, a subsidiary of Vancouver-based fuel cell developer Ballard Power Systems; Vice President for Government and Community Relations for New York-based independent power company Sithe Energies, Inc.; and most recently retired as Senior Director of Regulatory & Political Affairs at NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, the world's leading producer of electricity from the wind and sun and a world leader in energy storage. During his 22-year tenure with both NextEra Energy Resources and Sithe Energies, David was responsible for managing legislative, regulatory, and community matters at the state and local levels, as well as representing the companies at the Regional Transmission Organizations covering New York, PJM, New England and Ontario.[00:02:32] Community-level power project strategies[00:06:55] Renewable energy development and community engagement progress[00:10:40] Successful engagement strategies for renewable energy developers in rural communities[00:19:25] Progress in renewable energy development in Southwest Power Pool regions[00:24:18] Strategies for successful renewable energy project campaigning[00:28:50] Challenges developers face with the power of new media tools[00:32:44] The importance of upfront community analysis for renewable energy developers[00:36:32] Tailoring renewable energy project strategies to community concerns[00:40:33] The organic nature of opposition to renewable projects, not driven by big money[00:49:19] Local considerations in renewable energy project development[00:52:35] Lessons from fracking for renewable energy development[00:56:59] Advocating for a campaign mindset in renewable energy developmentLearn more and stay up to date at KnowPowerShow.comConnect with our HostsNoha SidhomLinkedInMike BorgattiLinkedInGabel Associates

The news of Texas covered today includes:Our Lone Star story of the day: Electrical engineer Ross Aten, engineering manager for a Texas electric cooperative that works on both the ERCOT and Southwest Power Pool grids, explains that the fundamental weakness of the ERCOT grid (and others) still exists and as long as it does, a very bad "new normal" for Texas will be conservation calls from ERCOT and real worry of being pushed into load shedding (where your power is turned off to preserve generation and the grid.)Aten explains why such such rolling load shedding is absolutely necessary to preserve the grid and generation facilities as well as why we are in the position of being very close to having to engage in such on a somewhat regular basis.Beyond argument is the fact that unreliable generation resources make up too much of a percentage of ERCOT grid capacity and that these subsidized resources are driving away private investment in building reliable, dispatchable power generation facility such as those powered by natural gas. [See ERCOT grid fact sheet here.]All one need do is see what happened during the danger hours on Monday and Tuesday morning, 15 and 16 January 2024. While wind generation was 28.6 percent of grid capacity it was only able to generate around 6.9 and 12.06 percent Monday and Tuesday respectively at 7:30 a.m. (much lower later in the day.) Solar was 0.00 and 0.05 percent respectively.The chart shows* clearly that reliable generation from fuels that can be turned up and down, on and off, when needed pulled all the weight in keeping the electric grid up and operating. *https://prattontexas.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/ercot-1-15-2024-0730.pngNatural gas was fueling 67.22 percent of what was on the grid when its percentage of grid capacity, from the fact sheet, is only 41.8 percent of the ERCOT grid!To learn much more about how all operates with Ross Aten, visit:2/18/2021 – In-Depth on the Texas rolling blackoutsOur Lone Star story of the day is sponsored by Allied Compliance Services providing the best service in DOT, business and personal drug and alcohol testing since 1995.Listen on the radio, or station stream, at 5pm Central. Click for our radio and streaming affiliates.www.PrattonTexas.com

Wyoming is the top coal-producing state in the U.S. But like much of the country, the state is transitioning to new sources of energy. This comes as the region faces reliability challenges from heat, drought, and other factors. How are Wyoming and other Western states balancing the growth of lower carbon power sources with the need for a reliable grid and continued economic growth? The University of Wyoming's Kara Fornstrom, formerly Director of State Regulatory Policy for the Southwest Power Pool and Chair of the Wyoming Public Service Commission, weighs in. 

In the latest episode of the Energy West podcast, Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about an 11th hour push to form a day-ahead market in the West that includes California AND is independently governed. The initiative drew widespread support from potential participants–and lots of questions about legal feasibility. They also discuss an interview with Southwest Power Pool executive Bruce Rew about the market operator's expansion of its comprehensive market into the Western Interconnection.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on X/Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

The West is getting a second RTO (or regional transmission organization). The Southwest Power Pool is launching a western branch of its existing RTO, which covers much of the Midwest. Nine Rocky Mountain utilities and power marketers have committed to launching the western branch in 2026. An RTO manages the transmission grid and wholesale electricity market for its participants. Right now, the only market operator in the West is the California Independent System Operator (or CAISO). Since the 1990s, there have been plenty of failed attempts to create another comprehensive market in the West. If the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approves SPP's western expansion, it will not only be the second RTO in the West, it will also be the first RTO operated in Eastern and Western Interconnections. NewsData's Dan Catchpole talked about the news with SPP's Senior Vice President of Operations Bruce Rew. Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets. Follow us on X/Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

Wind production in America's wind basket, a 14-state region including Iowa and Kansas, fell off the table in June, yet the region has served its power load during the hot summer.In this episode of Grid Talk host Marty Rosenberg interviews Lanny Nickell who is executive vice president and CEO for the Southwest Power Pool. Nickell talks about the summer's wind mystery.“We have over 32,000 megawatts of nameplate wind capacity in SPP. Again, that's across 14 states. On June 6 of this year at 10 o'clock in the morning, out of the 32,000 megawatts of nameplate wind capacity, only 110 megawatts of energy was actually produced,” he said. “That's less than 0.4% and what's remarkable about that number is that you would expect across a broad geographic footprint covering all or parts of 14 states that you would see more wind than what we saw.”It's alarming because during our peak conditions, we expect to see a little over 5,000 megawatts of wind production,” he said. The system avoided blackouts and brownouts but not by much. “It was stressed, absolutely.”Lanny Nickell – As executive vice president and chief operating officer, Lanny Nickell is responsible for SPP's provision of engineering, operations, and information technology services to members and customers. These services include coordination of reliable power system operations, development, design and administration of energy markets, development of transmission expansion plans needed to facilitate delivery of reliable and affordable energy to consumers, and administration of resource adequacy policies.Nickell received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tulsa and is a graduate of Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program

In the latest episode of the Energy West podcast, Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about concerns that CAISO's extended day-ahead market could short-circuit the Western Resource Adequacy Program, Energy Northwest and X-Energy's plans to build 12 small modular nuclear reactors, CAISO's new subscriber-funded model for new transmission lines, Bonneville Power Administration sizing up day-ahead market offerings from CAISO and the Southwest Power Pool, and more.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

William Hogan, the Raymond Plank Research Professor of Global Energy Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, along with his colleague Scott Harvey, are the architects of the market structure employed in every competitive regional wholesale power market in the United States, known as the bid-based, security constrained economic dispatch model with locational marginal prices.This market model has been the subject of criticisms from its inception some three decades ago,  but in recent years it has come under renewed attack from interests who claim it is inadequate to support a transition to a clean-energy grid comprised of many zero marginal cost intermittent renewable generation resources.Hogan and Harvey authored a paper in October 2022 defending and explaining the market structure incorporating locational marginal pricing, or LMP. In this episode, Hogan elaborates and explains that, not only are critics wrong to suggest LMP markets aren't up to the task, but they are in fact the only means available to facilitate the clean-energy transition. "If you want an efficient market in the electricity system, this is all the only way to do it – that we know of," Professor Hogan tells the podcast. "This model is ubiquitous and successful. I call it successful market design."Hogan scoffs at criticism that the LMP market design isn't the correct vehicle to accommodate increasing amounts of zero marginal cost renewable resources. Such criticisms fail to recognize the role that battery storage and demand-side resources will play in decarbonized markets, he says. "Even if you had 100% renewables (on the grid), there will be periods of time when you're capacity short because you just didn't have enough of them. And then the demand side is going to be much more important because we're going to have to adjust demand. And implicit in the theory, or explicit in the theory, is that the price will be set by the demand side, not by the supply side, but it's the same marginal cost principle. You get the same answer in terms of economic dispatch. And you get the same pricing outcome across the grid. So absent the fantasy world of an infinite supply of zero marginal cost energy, that theoretical problem doesn't arise."The empirical proof that  the criticism is misplaced is evident in the Western interconnect, where increasing numbers of utilities are joining the Western Energy Imbalance Market, which employs LMP pricing, primarily to accommodate the rapidly increasing amounts of renewable energy resources in the region. "This is a very powerful empirical argument that says, no, you've got it exactly backwards. It's not that we need to get rid of this. We need to strengthen it and expand it," Professor Hogan says. "Because the basic design works in theory and it works in practice, and all the other things that we have tried – I don't know how many of your listeners know but PJM tried something else first. And it didn't work. And New England tried something else first, and it didn't work. And California tried something else first, and it didn't work. And Texas tried something else first. And it didn't work. And then they all had to revise and reform and go through the agony of that process to get to bid-based security-constrained economic dispatch with locational marginal prices, which is now done across all of these. And New York started this from the beginning, the Midwest started this from the beginning, the Southwest Power Pool when it converted to an RTO started with this, so that's why it's now true in all of these markets in the United States."Support the show

In the latest episode of the Energy West podcast, Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about the California Independent System Operator's latest look at expanding its footprint, Southwest Power Pool's announcement that Markets+ is moving into development early, big rate increase requests from two SoCal utilities, Puget Sound Energy's push to shut down its natural gas business and more.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at NewsData's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

Unlike the rest of North America, the West's power grid outside California is a patchwork of utility fiefdoms generating, wheeling and distributing electricity. Centralized electricity markets dominate the rest of the continent.There is widespread consensus in the energy industry that the West needs greater coordination if it's going to decarbonize and keep the lights on in millions of homes from New Mexico to British Columbia. Two organizations—the Southwest Power Pool and the California ISO—are pushing competing proposals to create a day-ahead and real-time market in the West.NewsData's Abigail Sawyer, Jason Fordney and Dan Catchpole have been closely covering these evolutions. They recently sat down to discuss the proposals, what's happened so far and what could happen next.Read more coverage from NewsData's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.

Kieran Connolly, Dan Catchpole, Abigail Sawyer, and Paul Dockery kick off the Season 5 premier of Public Power Underground.06:11 - what evolution into a centrally dispatched market means for a hydro-centric region SPP Sees Markets+ as Potential Path to Full RTO in the West Carrie Simpson to serve as Southwest Power Pool's director of western services development California Independent System Operator released its draft final proposal for the Extended Day-Ahead Market (EDAM) 18:42 - how does increased deployment of wind and solar in the Northwest impact hydro operations Biden Signs Inflation Reduction Act; Permitting Reform Next Step Rural Electric Co-ops Glad to Be Included in Inflation Reduction Act Benefits Twitter memo on Ira versus I-R-A The definitive podcasts on the content of the Inflation Reduction Act 29:05 - thoughts on SMRs in a hydro dominated region like the Pacific Northwest PacifiCorp, TerraPower to Study Deploying Five More SMRs by 2035 TVA developing plans for 20 small nuclear reactors to power Tennessee Valley by 2050 TVA takes step to build small modular reactor near Oak Ridge 38:52 - hydro operations under stressed grid conditions California Avoids Rolling Blackouts in Record Heat; Energy Prices Surge Pacific Northwest heat wave was a freak, 10,000-year event, study finds An energy emergency alert 3 for CAISO in August of 2020 Extremely constrained system in the Northwest in March of 2019 53:46 - Short to Ground; where we TL;DR our way through the rest of the news SPP membership elects two new directors Western Power Pool Approves Nominees for New Independent Board of Directors SRP coverage by Abigail Sawyer Southwest elections preview by Abigail Sawyer Coverage of PPC pressing Columbia Basin Collaborative by K.C. Mehaffey Fusion coverage by Dan Catchpole Product switch coverage by Dan Catchpole Hydrogen project coverage by Steve Ernst Drought coverage by Linda Dailey Paulson Briefs in Clearing Up Spot Market Power La Nina NOAA Climate Forecasts WY2023 Water Supply Forecast You can find our merch on shopify. You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember to share this with any friends you have that are electric utility enthusiasts like us!Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it's work to watch!

Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about Southwest Power Pool's vision for an RTO in the West, intrigue and in-fighting in Arizona's Salt River Project, a growing rift between Northwest public power utilities and the White House, environmentalists' objections to hydrogen fuel development, and a push in the Northwest to ban sales of gas-powered cars. They also discuss the tragic death of industry leader Therese Hampton.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about:  expediting utility undergrounding, Jason's response to opinion columns in the LA Times about whether or not rural California towns that were destroyed by wildfires should be rebuilt, Southwest Power Pool's draft service offering, and electric transportation news. Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at NewsData's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney discuss expanding the Southwest Power Pool's regional transmission organization into the West, California's ambitious plan to install 250,000 EV chargers, the reliability of hydropower in the West during droughts, and more.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets.Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @fordneyenergy.

UPDATE: Since this was recorded, several more Western utilities said they are also moving forward with the next phase of Southwest Power Pool's market proposal for the West.Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Abigail Sawyer talk about efforts by California lawmakers to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant operating, growing support for the Southwest Power Pool's market proposal for the West and more.Read more about what's happening in the power industry in the West at Newsdata's Clearing Up and California Energy Markets. Follow us on Twitter: @CUnewsdata, @CEMnewsdata, @dcatchpole and @energy_abigail. 

I have been thinking a lot about how unstable the electrical grid is. Everything I am reading and hearing when I talk to experts is America needs a massive overhaul of our antiquated electric infrastructure. The overhaul will not be cheap industry experts say it requires more than $2 trillion. The current network of transmission wires, substations, and transformers is decaying with age and underinvestment, a condition highlighted by catastrophic failures during increasingly frequent and severe weather events.According to a Reuters examination of federal data, power outages over the last six years have more than doubled compared to the previous six years. In the past two years, power systems have collapsed in Gulf Coast hurricanes, West Coast wildfires, Midwest heat waves, and a Texas deep freeze, causing prolonged and sometimes deadly outages.The central and upper Midwest, Texas, and Southern California face an increased risk of power outages this summer from extreme heat, wildfires, and extended drought, the nation’s grid monitor, warned yesterday.In a dire new assessment, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC) described regions of the country pushed closer than ever toward energy emergencies by a combination of climate change impacts and a transition from traditional fossil fuel generators to carbon-free renewable power.NERC’s analysis examined the potential punch of extreme weather, which may wreak havoc on everything from reduced hydropower to transmission lines brought down by wildfires. Grid operators are increasingly relying on intermittent resources like wind and solar as coal units retire and the reliability and emissions of gas resources come under scrutiny. How the summer unfolds also may have political ramifications, as it could affect public support for President Joe Biden’s push to decarbonize the U.S. grid by 2035.The NERC report also highlighted an increased, urgent hazard to grid operations from the electronic controls that link wind and solar farms to high-voltage grid networks. The devices, called power inverters, must be programmed to “ride through” short-term disturbances, such as the loss of a large power plant or high-voltage line, but too often, they are not. According to the report, Those that shut down compound stress on the grid.The NERC cited incidents in May and June last year when the Texas system was hit with widespread solar farm shutdowns, followed by similar outages in California between June and August. The unexpected events disrupted traditional power plants, interfered with grid recovery operations, and caused some outages of customer-owned power units.The report warned that inverter disruption is one of the most dangerous things on the bulk power system. They state that grid operators can be surprised by the outages when the finely balanced systems are already dealing with instability.Highlighting the most serious regional threats, the report said:The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), grid manager and energy market operator in the central Midwest, “faces a capacity shortfall in its North and Central areas, resulting in high risk of energy emergencies during peak summer conditions.”“More extreme temperatures, higher generation outages, or low wind conditions expose the MISO North and Central areas to higher risk of temporary operator-initiated load shedding to maintain system reliability,” the report said of the MISO region, which runs from Canada’s Manitoba province to Louisiana.“An elevated risk of energy emergencies persists” across the West this summer “as dry hydrological conditions threaten the availability of hydroelectric energy for transfer.” The report said that nearly 3,400 megawatts of new resources are available as scheduled this summer, and California should be able to meet peak power demands this summer. But a repeat of the heat dome that scorched the entire West in 2019 could threaten the availability of imported power that the state depends on, causing energy emergencies.In Texas, a “combination of extreme peak demand, low wind, and high outage rates from thermal generators could require system operators to use emergency procedures, up to and including temporary manual load shedding.” Delays in completing new transmission lines now underway “may contribute to localized reliability concerns.”The report said that drought conditions in the Missouri River Basin might affect gas, coal, or nuclear plants in the Southwest Power Pool that rely on the river for cooling water supplies.It added that some coal-fired power plant owners have difficulty arranging fuel deliveries because of mine closings, rail shipping interruptions, and increased coal exports.The report warned of threats from Western wildfires, where dry weather raises the risk of ignition and smoke from blazes can diminish output from a utility- and customer-owned solar panels and short circuit high-voltage power lines, as happened last year in Oregon.On top of this, NERC reported an increased danger of potential Russian cyberattacks on the nation’s power systems in retaliation for U.S. support for Ukraine in the current conflict.NERC raised the issue of solar power interruptions after the 2016 Blue Cut Fire in Southern California. The wildfire triggered short circuits in transmission lines, leading to voltage drops and outages at nearby solar units.Earlier this year, California officials described conditions that could occur this summer — including potential blackouts because of power supply shortages. Among the times with high risks: are the early evening when solar power goes away and the month of September. MISO officials have agreed with NERC’s cautions about the strains on the region’s power supplies.MISO is facing increased coal, natural gas, and nuclear generation retirements, leading to an inadequate response last month as it lined up power reserves to create a cushion against system disruptions and unexpectedly heavy power demand. The region enters the summer 1,230 MW short of meeting its planning reserve margin.For emergency managers, stand by for power outages, and it looks like help is not coming soon. References: https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-renewables-electric-grid/https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Reliability%20Assessments%20DL/NERC_SRA_2022.pdfhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/americas-power-grid-is-increasingly-unreliable-11645196772Podcasts: Get full access to The Emergency Management Network at emnetwork.substack.com/subscribe

Representatives from OPPD, NPPD, and the Southwest Power Pool join me to see how dire these predictions are.

Clearing Up's Dan Catchpole and California Energy Markets' Jason Fordney talk about the Southwest Power Pool's governance straw proposal for Markets+, consternation over FERC's refund order, and more.Learn more about regional market conditions and near-term market outlooks at the 6th Annual Pacific Northwest Wholesale Power Markets Conference. The June 23-24 virtual event—co-presented by NewsData and CJB Energy Economics—will feature leading energy officials from around the Northwest and beyond. 

Mercedes-Benz returns to its aspirational roots; why extreme heat this summer spells trouble for the nation's electric grid; a new EV farm tractor manufacturer offers a robust platform for future "smart" farm implements. 

According to the 2022 Summer Reliability Assessment issued by the North American Reliability Corporation, a non-profit organization created by the electric utility industry to promote the reliability and adequacy of bulk power transmission in North America, several parts of North America are at elevated or high risk of energy shortfalls this summer due to predicted above normal temperatures and drought conditions over the western half of the United States and Canada. 

Anette visits with her friend, David Hudson, President of Xcel Energy – New Mexico and Texas, about the Texas energy grid, how the Texas Panhandle is different from most of the rest of Texas, and what happens during severe weather events. Much of the discussion talks about the interconnectedness of natural gas supplies and electrical output, as well as how ERCOT, or the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, operates differently than our grid up in the Panhandle. During the severe February freeze of 2021, the top of Texas avoided many of the outages faced by many of Anette's friends across the state. David also served at president of Panhandle Twenty/20.David Hudson became president of Xcel Energy's New Mexico and Texas Southwestern Public Service Company (SPS) operations Jan. 1, 2014.  SPS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Xcel Energy Inc. and a member of the Southwest Power Pool, a regional transmission organization. SPS supplies retail electric utility services to 400,000 customers in eastern New Mexico and West Texas, in addition to wholesale power and interstate transmission services. The company owns and maintains over 7,700 miles of transmission and more than 16,000 miles of distribution lines in the region spanning southwestern Kansas, the Oklahoma Panhandle, the Texas Panhandle and South Plains, and east and southeast New Mexico. It owns and maintains 500 substations and eight power generating plants, totaling just over 4,900 megawatts of generation capacity.  SPS recently placed into service two large wind projects including the 478 MW Hale Wind Project south of Plainview, TX, and the 522 MW Sagamore Wind Project south of Portales, NM.Hudson is on the board of and previously served as president of the United Way of Amarillo & Canyon. Hudson also serves on the board of directors for the Boy Scouts of America's Golden Spread Council and the board of directors for the West Texas A&M University Foundation.Hudson earned a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering from Texas Tech University, and a Master of Business Administration from West Texas A&M University.  He is a licensed professional engineer by the state of Texas. He is also a registered Texas high school football official.

Southwest Power Pool expects wind generation to return to the top of the fuel stack and become the No. 1 fuel source for 2020, while keeping an eye on the evolution of energy storage and continuing its expansion of the Western Energy Imbalance System market. Barbara Sugg discusses her first six months as SPP president & CEO, which started with the challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic, with Kassia Micek, an editor covering North American power markets for S&P Global Platts.