EUCI Blog

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) received the greenlight for a $6.7 billion plan to build 38 transmission projects over the next 10 years mainly to meet growing demands for electricity. The CAISO Board of Governors approved the plan May 19. CAISO operates a wholesale electric market over 26,000…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) expects its peak load will grow about 35% in the next 10 years to 163 gigawatts (GW), spurred primarily by data center development, the grid operator said in a draft long-term forecast. The forecast for data center load is now double the level…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has launched a $1.9 billion program to spur electricity infrastructure investments aimed at upgrading the existing grid to meet growing electricity demand and resource adequacy requirements. The program – Speed to Power through Accelerated Reconductoring and other Key Advanced Transmission Technology Upgrades or…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill – making good on a campaign promise to deal with rising utility bills – on her first day in office issued two executive orders aimed at freezing rates and creating more generating capacity. “I promised the people of New Jersey bold action to lower…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The independent market monitor for the PJM Interconnection is calling on federal regulators to reject an agreement to provide power to a planned Pennsylvania Amazon data center until there is evidence it won’t impact retail energy costs. The PJM is the largest grid operator in the U.S. covering Midwestern…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Five state utility commissions opposed to paying for what they see as renewable energy projects for other states are seeking to change the financing for $22 billion in transmission projects planned by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO). In a complaint filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC),…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Three Utah electricity providers are seeking to block their power wholesaler, PacifiCorp, from adding $1.7 billion to their rates to pay for liabilities from a string of wildfires in Oregon and California. The three – the Deseret Generation & Transmission Co-operative, Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS), and Utah…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The combination of coal-fired power plant closures, spurred by state and federal initiatives, and generous tax credits for new electric generation under the Inflation Reduction Act created a flood in renewable energy projects now waiting to get connected to the grid. “The surge in investment and development has overwhelmed…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) – serving all or part of 14 states from Texas to North Dakota – will need as much as $263 billion in new generation and transmission through 2050 to support a peak demand projected to rise 40% to 80%. Those investments can be made…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Efforts to expand and modernize electric grids around the world – to cope with growing demand for power and a shift to renewable generation – are struggling to keep pace in the face of supply chain bottlenecks, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report. “Prices and procurement times…

By Mark Jaffe, EUCI energy writer Declines in hydropower output, caused by low stream flows in the Pacific Northwest, are forcing the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to buy more wholesale power leading to a projected $44 million loss. The agency had set a target of $70 million in revenues – so the gap between the…

Four Kansas GOP members working to blunt federal power on transmission line corridor September 13, 2024 Four Republicans in the Kansas congressional delegation Friday offered support for legislation limiting federal authority to take control of private property for development of a national electric transmission corridor. The bill backed by U.S. Reps. Tracey Mann and Ron…