Arizona Corporation Commission

Area Control Error

American Council on Renewable Energy

American Electric Power

Automatic Generation Control

Advanced metering infrastructure

America’s Power Plan
A policy education project of Energy Innovation.

America’s Power Plan is a platform for innovative thinking about how to manage the transformation happening in the electric power sector today.
We curate expert information for decision-makers and their staffs, highlighting specific solutions to today’s most pressing policy, regulatory, planning, and market design challenges.

Arizona Pubic Service – power company

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Stimulus bill)

Arizona Renewable Resource and Transmission Identification Subcommittee

Available Transmission Capacity (i.e., that not reserved under contract)

American Wind Energy Association

Balancing Authority Area (formerly known as Control Areas)

Best Available Retrofit Technology

Business Energy Tax Credit

Bureau of Land Management

Best Management Practice

Bonneville Power Administration

Biennial Transmission Assessment (Arizona)

California Independent System Operator

Central Arizona Transmission Study

Colorado Coordinated Planning Group

Carbon capture and sequestration

Colorado’s Clean Energy Development Authority

Continuous monitoring system

Clean Energy Vision
A comprehensive plan toward a clean energy future in the West.

Mexico’s Comisión Federal de Electricidad

Colorado Long Range Transmission Planning Group (of CCPG)

Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity

Clean Power Plan
The Clean Power Plan is a policy aimed at combating anthropogenic climate change (global warming) that was first proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency in June 2014, under the administration of US President Barack Obama. The final version of the plan was unveiled by President Obama on August 3, 2015.

California Public Utilities Commission

Committee on Regional Electric Power Cooperation (Western Governors’ Association)

Competitive Renewable Energy Zone

Colorado River Transmission Study

California Transmission Planning Group

U.S. Department of Energy

Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (California)

Energy Efficiency

Ely Energy Center

Extra-high voltage

Energy Imbalance Market (also known as the Western Energy Imbalance Market – not to be confused with SPP’s Western Energy Imbalance Service – which is a separate EIM)

Environmental Impact Report

Environmental Impact Study

Eastern Nevada Transmission Intertie (proposed by NV Energy)

NARUC Committee on Energy Resources and Environment

Energy Supply Plan

Electricity Service Supplier

Environmental Work Group (of RETI)

Energy Working Group (of WGA)

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

FERC Project – project of NRDC

Funding Opportunity Announcement

Generation Availability Data Systems (NERC)

Great Basin Transmission

Geothermal Energy Association

greenhouse gases

Generation Interconnection Process Reform (of CAISO)

Geographic Information System

Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development

Generating Resource Advisory Committee (of NPCC)

Historical Analysis Workgroup (of the TEPPC TAS)

Hydro-Thermal Co-optimization

Interconnection agreement

Interwest Energy Alliance

investor-owned utility

Idaho Power Company (usually referred to as “Idaho Power” more often than its acronym)

Interconnection request

Integrated resource planning

Integration of Renewable Resources Program (of CAISO)

Independent System Operator – While utilities may own their own generating stations and power lines for distributing electricity to their customers, much of the operation of these assets occurs through their participation in a regional transmission organization (RTO), sometimes called an independent system operator (ISO). RTOs operate the transmission grid over a multi-state region on behalf of utilities—ensuring greater system reliability and reducing costs. As part of this process, RTOs “dispatch” power plants to start running as electricity demand increases, and they stop the plants when demand decreases. Typically, RTOs dispatch plants based on cost (lowest cost first), regardless of where in the multi-state region they may be located. As a result, overall cost and emissions implications can be complex, and may take little account of state borders.

Intra-Hour Transaction Accelerator Platform (being developed by WestConnect and NTTG; will facilitate integration of renewables)

Investment Tax Credit

Joint Guidance Committee (of WECC)

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Levelized Cost of Energy

Location Constrained Resource Interconnection Facilities (in CAISO)

Large Generator Interconnection Procedure (CAISO)

Local Regulatory Authority

Load serving entity – responsible for specific portion of load in CA (part of RSO planning)

Large-Scale Solar Association

load-serving entity

Long-Term Planning Tools Task Force (of TEPPC’s TAS)

Midwest Independent System Operator

Modeling Work Group (of TEPPC’s TAS)

National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners

Not in my back yard

Network open service

Nevada Power Company (more often referred to as “NV Energy”)

Northwest Power and Conservation Council

Natural Resources Defense Council

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Northern Tier Transmission Group

National Wind Coordinating Collaborative

NW Energy Coalition

Open Access Same Time Information System

Open Access Transmission Tariff

Oregon Department of Energy

One Nevada transmission line project, being developed by LS Power and NV Energy. It will connect northern and southern NV for the first time.

Oregon Public Utility Commission

PacifiCorp

Planning Coordination Committee (of WECC)

Proposed Decision

Peak Reliability (Peak) was formed as a result of the bifurcation of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) into a Regional Entity (WECC) and a Reliability Coordinator (Peak). The bifurcation of WECC received final approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on February 12, 2014. Peak, a company wholly independent of WECC performs the Reliability Coordinator function in its RC Area in the Western Interconnection.

WECC was formed on April 18, 2002, by the merger of the Western Systems Coordinating Council (WSCC), and two regional transmission associations. WSCC, WECC’s predecessor organization was organized in August 1967 to facilitate electric industry coordination in the planning and operations of the electric system in Western North America.

ColumbiaGrid’s Planning and Expansion Functional Agreement

Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement

Pacific Gas and Electric

Portland General Electric (not to be confused with PG&E which is Pacific Gas and Electric)

Public Interest Energy Research

Participating Intermittent Resources Program (California)

Point of Receipt/Point of Delivery

Publicly-owned utility (referred more often as “publics” rather than acronym)

Power purchase agreement

Platte River Power Authority
(not to be confused with PURPA – which is the Public Utilities Regulatory Policy Act of 1978).

Plenary Stakeholder Group (of CA RETI)

Participating Transmission Owner (CAISO)

State public utility commission (general term for these kinds of commissions)

Public Utilities Commission of Nevada

Photovoltaic (generation)

resource adequacy

Today’s electric system is primarily composed of mechanical, largely thermal generators. Coal, gas, nuclear and hydro plants have predictable characteristics, from which utility planners have built expectations of performance and metrics that are used to ensure there is sufficient energy available to meet demand under widely varying conditions. This assurance is known as Resource Adequacy (RA). In its simplest form RA is determined by projecting expected demand for each hour of the year, then adding extra reserves to plan for unexpected events. Unexpected events can include loss of a generator or transmission segment, weather anomalies, etc.

Renewable energy

Colorado’s Renewable Energy Development Infrastructure

Renewable Energy Standard

Renewable Energy Transmission Access Advisory Committee (NV)

California Renewable Energy Transmission Initiative

Renewable Energy Transmission Planning Process (proposed in CA)

Renewable energy zone

Request for Information

Rocky Mountain Area Transmission Study

Renewable Northwest (previously known as Renewable Northwest Project) – based in Portland, OR.

Regional Organization
(See Pathway Initiative Regional Organization).

Record of Decision

Renewable Portfolio Standard

Regional System Operator

Regional transmission organization – While utilities may own their own generating stations and power lines for distributing electricity to their customers, much of the operation of these assets occurs through their participation in a regional transmission organization (RTO), sometimes called an independent system operator (ISO). RTOs operate the transmission grid over a multi-state region on behalf of utilities—ensuring greater system reliability and reducing costs. As part of this process, RTOs “dispatch” power plants to start running as electricity demand increases, and they stop the plants when demand decreases. Typically, RTOs dispatch plants based on cost (lowest cost first), regardless of where in the multi-state region they may be located. As a result, overall cost and emissions implications can be complex, and may take little account of state borders.

Southern Arizona Transmission Study

Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition

Southern California Edison Company

Subregional Coordination Group (a WECC group)

San Diego Gas & Electric

Solar Energy Industries Association

Sub-regional Planning Group

State-Provincial Steering Committee (of WGA)

Scenario Planning Steering Group (of RETP)

Salt River Project

Stakeholder Steering Committee (of RETI)

Sierra Pacific Power Company

Southwest Area Transmission (Subregional Planning Group for AZ-NM, southern portions of Nevada, Utah and Colorado)

Studies Work Group (of TEPPC’s TAS)

Southwest Intertie Project (Southern Idaho to Las Vegas)

Transmission Access Charge

Technical Advisory Subcommittee (of TEPPC)

Transmission Expansion Planning Policy Committee (of WECC)

Utah Clean Energy

Utah Renewable Energy Zones

U.S. Department of Energy

U.S. Forest Service

Utility Wind Integration Group

Variable Generation Subcommittee (of WECC’s JGC)

Voltage Source Converter

Western Area Power Administration

Western Clean Energy Advocates

Western Conference of Public Commissioners

Western Electricity Coordinating Council

The Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) is a non-profit corporation that exists to assure a reliable Bulk Electric System in the geographic area known as the Western Interconnection. WECC has been approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as the Regional Entity for the Western Interconnection. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) delegated some of its authority to create, monitor, and enforce reliability standards to WECC through a Delegation Agreement.

WECC was formed on April 18, 2002, by the merger of the Western Systems Coordinating Council (WSCC), and two regional transmission associations. WSCC, WECC’s predecessor organization was organized in August 1967 to facilitate electric industry coordination in the planning and operations of the electric system in Western North America.

Western Interstate Energy Board

Western Electricity Industry Leaders

Western Energy Imbalance Market (also known informally as EIM since it was the first EIM in the region.  Not to be confused with SPP’s Western Energy Imbalance Service – which is a separate EIM)

Western Governors’ Association

Western Grid Group

Wyoming Infrastructure Authority

Western Interconnection Regional Advisory Body

Working Group for Investment in Reliable & Economic Electric Systems

Columbia Grid/NTTG Wind Integration Study Team

Western Markets Exploratory Group

The WMEG, which is made up of 14 western utilities, plans to explore the potential for a staged approach to new market services including day-ahead energy sales, transmission system expansion, power supply and grid solutions, and existing and emerging public policies.

The Western Markets Exploratory Group (WMEG) today (March 23, 2022) announced the hiring of Utilicast, an energy consulting company, to evaluate regional market structures to improve affordability, reliability, and decarbonization opportunities across the West.

The WMEG, which is made up of 14 western utilities (see list below), plans to explore the potential for a staged approach to new market services including day-ahead energy sales, transmission system expansion, power supply and grid solutions, and existing and emerging public policies.

“Utilicast is excited to continue supporting our clients in this ambitious project to create a roadmap for greater regional market solutions in the West,” said Brian Holmes, Utilicast Director of Western Markets. “Having worked extensively in support of the evolution of independent system operator and regional transmission organization markets throughout North America, we look forward to helping the WMEG decide which path forward best meets their needs.”

The group also hopes to identify market solutions that can help achieve carbon reduction goals while supporting reliable, cost-effective service for customers. WMEG anticipates Utilicast will develop this roadmap before the end of summer 2022.

WMEG participants include Xcel Energy-Colorado, Arizona Public Service, Black Hills Energy, Idaho Power, NV Energy, Inc., PacifiCorp, Platte River Power Authority, Portland General Electric, Puget Sound Energy, Salt River Project, Seattle City Light, and Tucson Electric Power.

With the recent addition of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and Public Service New Mexico, the WMEG now consists of 14 entities representing nearly 70,000 MW of load and 13 million customers across the Mountain West, Desert Southwest, and Pacific Northwestern part of the Western Interconnection.

Many of the organizations in the group are currently participating in, or preparing to join the California Independent System Operator’s Western Energy Imbalance Market or Southwest Power Pool’s Western Energy Imbalance Service Market.  WMEG’s discussions will not impact participation in or evaluation of those markets, as the group is focused on long-term market solutions.

About the participating utilities: 

Arizona Public Service

APS serves more than 1.3 million homes and businesses in 11 of Arizona’s 15 counties, and is a leader in delivering affordable, clean, and reliable energy in the Southwest. The company is committed to serving customers with 100% clean power by 2050. As owner and operator of Palo Verde Generating Station, the nation’s largest producer of carbon-free electricity, and with one of the country’s most substantial renewable energy portfolios, APS’s current energy mix is 50% clean. With headquarters in Phoenix, APS is the principal subsidiary of Pinnacle West Capital Corp. (NYSE: PNW)

Black Hills Corp.

Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH) is a customer focused, growth-oriented utility company with a tradition of improving life with energy and a vision to be the energy partner of choice. Based in Rapid City, South Dakota, the company serves over 1.3 million natural gas and electric utility customers in eight states: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. More information is available at www.blackhillscorp.com.

Idaho Power
Idaho Power, headquartered in vibrant and fast-growing Boise, Idaho, has been a locally operated energy company since 1916. Today, it serves a 24,000-square-mile area in Idaho and Oregon. The company’s goal to provide 100% clean energy by 2045 builds on its long history as a clean-energy leader that provides reliable service at affordable prices. With 17 low-cost hydroelectric projects at the core of its diverse energy mix, Idaho Power’s residential, business and agricultural customers pay among the nation’s lowest prices for electricity. Its 2,000 employees proudly serve more than 600,000 customers with a culture of safety first, integrity always and respect for all.

IDACORP Inc. (NYSE: IDA), Idaho Power’s independent publicly traded parent company, is also headquartered in Boise, Idaho. To learn more, visit idahopower.com or idacorpinc.com.

Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is the nation’s largest municipal utility, with 8,019 megawatts (MW) of electric capacity and serving an average of 435 million gallons of water per day to the more than 4 million residents of Los Angeles, its businesses and visitors. For more than 100 years, LADWP has provided the city with reliable water and power service in a cost effective and environmentally responsible manner

NV Energy
NV Energy provides a wide range of energy services to more than 1.5 million customers throughout Nevada and a typical tourist population of 54 million annually. NV Energy, Inc. is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, do business as NV Energy. NV Energy is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. Information about NV Energy is available on the company’s website, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pages, which can be accessed via nvenergy.com.

PacifiCorp
Innovating to power a better future for the West, PacifiCorp operates the largest grid in the western United States, serving the growing energy needs of 2 million customers through 17,645 miles of transmission lines over a service area of 141,503 square miles. Our operating divisions are leaders in providing safe, reliable and sustainable low-cost power. Pacific Power serves 800,000 customers in Oregon, Washington and California. Rocky Mountain Power serves 1.2 million customers in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming.

Platte River Power Authority
Platte River Power Authority is a not-for-profit, community-owned public power utility that generates and delivers safe, reliable, environmentally responsible and financially sustainable energy and services to Estes Park, Fort Collins, Longmont and Loveland, Colorado, for delivery to their utility customers. For more information, visit prpa.org.

Portland General Electric
Portland General Electric (NYSE: POR) is a fully integrated energy company based in Portland, Oregon, with operations across the state. The company serves approximately 900,000 customers with a service area population of 2 million Oregonians in 51 cities. PGE owns 16 generation plants across Oregon and other Northwestern states and maintains and operates 14 public parks and recreation areas. For over 130 years, PGE has delivered safe, affordable and reliable energy to Oregonians. Together with its customers, PGE has the No. 1 voluntary renewable energy program in the U.S. PGE and its 3,000 employees are working with customers to build a clean energy future. In 2020, PGE, employees, retirees and the PGE Foundation donated $5.6 million and volunteered 18,200 hours with more than 400 nonprofits across Oregon. For more information visit www.PortlandGeneral.com/news.

Public Service New Mexico
With headquarters in Albuquerque, PNM is the largest electricity provider in New Mexico, serving more than 530,000 customers in dozens of communities across the state. PNM is a subsidiary of PNM Resources, an energy holding company also headquartered in Albuquerque. For more information, visit PNM.com

Puget Sound Energy (PSE)
Puget Sound Energy is proud to serve its neighbors and communities in 10 Washington counties. PSE is the state’s largest utility, supporting 1.2 million electric customers and nearly 900,000 natural gas customers.The company aspires to be a beyond net zero carbon energy company by 2045. For more about PSE, visit pse.com or follow on Facebook and Twitter.

Salt River Project (SRP)
SRP is a community-based, not-for-profit public power utility and the largest provider of electricity in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area, serving more than 1 million customers. SRP is also the metropolitan area’s largest supplier of water, delivering about 750,000 acre-feet annually to municipal, urban and agricultural water users.

Seattle City Light 
Seattle City Light, one of the nation’s largest publicly owned utilities, generates and delivers affordable, reliable and environmentally responsible power to the homes, businesses, and communities we serve. We provide carbon-neutral electricity, generated primarily from carbon-free hydropower, to over 900,000 residents in Seattle and the surrounding areas.

Tucson Electric Power
TEP provides safe, reliable electric service to more than 438,000 customers in Southern Arizona. For more information, visit tep.com. TEP and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis Inc. (TSX/NYSE: FTS), which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. For more information, visit fortisinc.com.

Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy (NASDAQ: XEL) provides the energy that powers millions of homes and businesses across eight Western and Midwestern states. Headquartered in Minneapolis, the company is an industry leader in responsibly reducing carbon emissions and producing and delivering clean energy solutions from a variety of renewable sources at competitive prices. For more information, visit xcelenergy.com

Wind Powering America

Western Resource Advocates

Western Renewable Energy Zone

Western Transmission Leadership Group (of NWCC)

Western Wind and Solar Integration Study

Western Wind & Solar Integration Study (of NREL)

Zone Identification and Technical Analysis (of WREZ)