WREZ Project Workplan and Schedule

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WREZ Project Workplan and Schedule

• Rich Halvey
• WGA

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Value Added By Project

• LSEs, transmission providers, generation
  developers, state regulators can make more
  informed decisions about
• Costs of renewable power
• Optimum transmission needed to move renewable
  power to consumers
• Potential partners in developing transmission to
  access renewable areas and
• Where renewable energy developers can site their
  facilities to ensure access to the transmission
  system and minimize environmental impacts.

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Information is essential to develop transmission
because

• Outside of the CA ISO and AB, there is no
  mechanism in the Western Interconnection to force
  unwilling parties to pay for new transmission.
• LSE fuel choices will ultimately determine what
  transmission gets built.
• LSE resource planners (and regulators) often
  operate in stovepipes and may miss opportunities
  for inter-company collaboration.
• Inter-company collaboration is important because
  transmission is a lumpy investment with large
  economies of scale. One LSE may not need all the
  capacity created by transmission to a REZ.

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A WREZ effort also

• Promotes a regional view of renewables
  development blunting potential balkanization of
  the renewables markets. This is particular
  important for development of renewables that are
  distant from load centers.
• Paves way for interstate collaboration on
• Permitting of multi-state transmission
• Allocating and recovering cost of new
  transmission.
• Could provide an informational foundation for new
  approaches to interconnection and transmission
  service queuing problems.

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Western Interconnection Context

• Highly integrated grid
• Excellent and diverse renewable resources
• State-by-state REZ initiatives
• Other Western Interconnection actions important
  to the WREZ work

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Context Western Interconnection
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Overview of WREZ Phases

• Identification of WREZs
• Technical analysis
• Stakeholder ground truthing
• Conceptual transmission from WREZs
• Coordinated procurement for renewables (beyond
  current budget period)
• Institutional options to facilitate interstate
  transmission for renewables (beyond current
  budget period)

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Organization of REZ Project
Steering Committee (Governors, PUC Commissioners,
Premiers, Federal ex-officio members)
Technical Committee (states, provinces, work
group chairs)
NREL technical support
LBNL Technical Support
Zone Identification/Technical Analysis
Generation/ Transmission Modeling
Environment, Land Use and Permitting
Ad Hoc Work Group?
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Interaction among work groups
Technical Committee
Resource zone identification work group
Environment, land use permitting work group
Generation/ transmission modeling work group
Economic assumptions in supply curves
Areas to be excluded and minimum elements an area
must have to be considered
Areas of concern
Mitigation measures and cost
Conceptual transmission plans
Model for LSE evaluation of interest in REZs
Area requiring close collaboration
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Estimated Phase I Timeline

• May 28-29 kick-off meeting Salt Lake City
• June 23 Technical Committee finalizes work plan
  and schedule
• July 11 publish REZ identification criteria
• July 30 identify developable renewable energy
  zones
• Sep 5 supply curves and mitigation strategies
  developed
• Sep 19 Draft report sent to Technical Committee
• Sep 24-25 Technical Committee meeting to consider
  draft report
• October 1-24 public comment and outreach
• November 21 revised draft report
• December 4 Technical Committee meets to finalize
  report
• December 16 final report to Steering Committee
• January 8, 2009 Steering Committee meets to
  approve report
• January 8, Launch of Phase 2 (transmission from
  zones)