SPP Board approves changes to facilitate Integrated System membership

Southwest Power Pool, Inc. (SPP) announced yesterday board approval of changes to accommodate the Integrated System’s (IS) membership in SPP. Heartland Consumers Power District (Heartland), Basin Electric Power Cooperative (Basin) and Western Area Power Administration – Upper Great Plains (Western) jointly own the IS, the backbone of the high-voltage transmission grid in the Upper Great Plains region of eastern Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. The board’s decision is an important first step towards the IS’ full integration into an regional transmission organization.

“These tariff changes will enable all the IS entities to join an RTO,” said SPP CEO Carl Monroe. “We are pleased that our culture and value to our members can provide benefits to our customers.”

Heartland, Basin and Western have been discussing the possibility of joining an RTO since late 2011 to increase options for buying and selling power. Following assessments and research, it was determined SPP was the best option to maximize opportunity.

In April, Basin’s board gave the cooperative’s management authorization to support Western in their federal process to join SPP and to negotiate terms and conditions of joining with SPP as a transmission owning member.

UGP Regional Manager Robert Harris said the action by the SPP board represents a major step toward Western’s full membership in SPP.

“It is the result of significant work by SPP, its members, committee and staff as well as Western,” Harris said. “We continue to be very impressed with SPP’s dedication and tenacity, working together to find solutions benefiting all members and look forward to being active participants in the SPP.”

According to Basin CEO and General Manager Paul Sukut, the next step in the process is Basin board action in July.

“Integrating with an RTO presents many complexities, but Basin and our entire member cooperative family are committed to working with our IS participants and SPP to facilitate this transition,” Sukut said.

Joining an RTO is a major shift in the way the IS members have traditionally done business, but all organizations involved firmly believe both the SPP members and the IS owners will benefit from the effort.

“The IS owners have been working on this effort for some time and we’re pleased the board endorsed the proposed changes as it is an important first step,” said Heartland CEO Russell Olson. “The SPP staff and membership have been a pleasure to work with. The open and collaborative process has reinforced an earlier decision to seek membership in SPP and we look forward to continuing our integration into SPP for the benefit of our customers.”

About Southwest Power Pool:

Founded in 1941, SPP is a group of 76 members in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas that serve more than 15 million customers. Membership is comprised of investor-owned utilities, municipal systems, generation and transmission cooperatives, state authorities, wholesale generators, power marketers, and independent transmission companies. SPP’s footprint includes 48,930 miles of transmission lines and 370,000 square miles of service territory.
As a Regional Transmission Organization, SPP ensures reliable supplies of power, adequate transmission infrastructure, and competitive wholesale electricity prices. The SPP Regional Entity oversees compliance enforcement and reliability standards development.

WAPA seeking transmission project proposals

Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) is seeking new applications from project developers interested in obtaining a loan to construct new or upgrade transmission lines and related facilities that promote the delivery of clean, renewable power. WAPA has $3.25 billion borrowing authority under the Transmission Infrastructure Program (TIP). The TIP was recently revised and details were outlined in an April 7 Federal Register notice.

TIP leverages WAPA’s depth of transmission project development experience and expertise, along with its statutory borrowing authority, to advance projects aimed at expanding and modernizing the electric grid to facilitate the delivery of reliable, affordable power from renewable energy sources. The TIP “is separate and distinct from Western’s power marketing functions, and each eligible project must stand on its own for repayment purposes,” WAPA said in the notice.

To be eligible, prospective projects must meet, at minimum, the following criteria:

Deliver or facilitate the delivery of renewable energy resources
Have at least one terminus (geographical point) in Western’s service territory
Demonstrate a reasonable expectation of repayment
Not adversely impact system reliability or operations
Serve the public interest

WAPA Administrator Mark Gabriel

“The doors are wide open. It’s time to solve the energy infrastructure needs for our nation’s future,” said WAPA Administrator Mark Gabriel. “Industry investments made today, like those offered through TIP, will ensure stability and reliability in the future.”

Applicants can either submit a project proposal and initial payment for the application review process, or submit a project proposal and business plan with full payment. WAPA’s staff will review the proposals quarterly and respond to applicants within 30 days of reviewing submissions.

For more information or how to apply, click here.

Customer IRP process underway

As a means to promote stable, efficient and economical use of electrical generation and conservation resources, the Energy Policy Act of 1992 requires Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) long-term firm power customers to prepare and submit integrated resource plans (IRP). Developed with considerable public involvement, IRPs evaluate utilities’ full range of alternatives to provide adequate, reliable and least-cost service to consumers while addressing risks and uncertainties. Continue reading →

Howard featured in WAPA’s August Energy Services Bulletin

The city of Howard, SD is featured in the August issue of Western Area Power Administration’s Energy Services Bulletin. According to the editor, Howard’s profile is the first of an ongoing series of customer profiles, highlighting the strengths, challenges, programs and operational and planning strategies WAPA customers use to keep the lights on. The article describes Howard as a community defined not by its size or challenges, but by its can-do spirit, and discusses the city’s integrated resource plan and energy efficiency options as well as its economic successes and hardships.

Energy Services Bulletin is WAPA’s monthly energy efficiency and planning newsletter dedicated to customer activities and sharing information. The goal of the customer profile series is to “encourage utilities to recognize the issues they have in common an to swap ideas and ask each other questions.” If you would like your utility to be featured, email storie@wapa.gov.

Vision for future, action today set Howard, SD, apart

Howard, SD, population 858, is defined not by its size or challenges, but by its can-do spirit.

The small municipal utility that serves the eastern South Dakota city is a Western customer and member system of Heartland Consumers Power District. A characteristically bare-bones staff attends to 500 residential, 130 commercial and three industrial meters. City Finance Manager Donna Klinkhammer, handles billing and fields customer calls while Electric Superintendent Kody Dawson manages the operational side, with an occasional assist from Water Foreman Jerry Adler. In other words, Howard looks like most small-town power providers—until you start digging into the details.

Wind pioneer

Take those two wind turbines at the western edge of town, for example. Howard was the first municipality in South Dakota to own and operate its own wind turbines. Installed in 2001, the reconditioned 108-kilowatt (kW) Micon units supply almost 10 percent of the city’s energy needs.

These two 108-kw Micon turbines were the first municipally owned and operated wind generators in the state of South Dakota. Courtesy Howard, SD.

The percentage of wind in Howard’s power portfolio is higher than the nation’s, which hovers around 3 percent, but the fringe benefits to the city are even greater. The wind project persuaded Broadwind Energy LLC to locate a gearbox maintenance and testing facility in the town, bringing 35 jobs for city residents. “Those turbines have been really good for economic development,” confirmed Klinkhammer.

Broadwind represents the utility’s biggest load, she noted. “Demand really spikes when they are testing the gearboxes,” Klinkhammer said. “We just put in a new transformer at the plant to handle it.”

Economic success story

The utility is also making a $40,000 addition to its system to serve an elevator and fertilizer plant that are part of the Howard Farmers’ Cooperative complex. PBM Packaging, a commercial printing service with 24-hour operations rounds out Howard’s roster of commercial and industrial customers. “Our biggest operational challenge is making sure our infrastructure can keep up with the economic growth,” said Klinkhammer.

That’s a great problem for a small, rural city to have, and some of the credit goes to Miner County Community Revitalization (MCCR). The nonprofit organization grew out of a high school class project in which the students studied the causes of the area’s decline and identified solutions. The project brought the community together and led to the establishment of MCCR in 1997.

The Northwest Area Foundation launched a 10-year exploratory partnership with MCCR in 2001 to look for ways to bring sustainable business development to Howard. MCCR purchased one of the wind turbines and donated it to the city, helped to attract an organic beef producer to the area and built a conference center and hotel for wind technician training. As a result of these efforts, Howard enjoys a much stronger economy than is the norm for rural America.

Hard times anyway

Unfortunately, nothing is recession proof, and Howard felt the effects the economic downturn. The beef company relocated to Oregon in 2010, and another company took over the facility for storage only. That same year, the uncertain future of the production tax credit caused the wind industry to slump, and Broadwind temporarily laid off a third of its workforce. The slump may have been partly responsible for the closure of the conference center and hotel last year. “The industry didn’t need workers, so there was less need for training,” Klinkhammer pointed out.

As Howard slowly emerges from the recession along with the rest of the country, the utility’s load appears not to have suffered any permanent contraction. Klinkhammer noted that growing load is still not as high a priority as infrastructure projects like burying overhead power lines.

Cost consciousness counts

Planning, too, takes a back seat to meeting the day-to-day power needs of residents. Like many small municipalities, Howard City Utilities submits its integrated resource plan through its power wholesaler, Heartland. “We provide them with our information and they do the projections,” said Dawson.

Heartland also provides energy-efficiency options for Howard. Residents can get a high-efficiency Marathon water heater at half the city’s cost through Heartland and participate in their load control program. “They appreciate the opportunity to manage their energy costs,” Dawson acknowledged.

Like its residents, Howard, S.D., likes to control its energy costs, too. Hydropower from Western helps keep the city’s electricity rates affordable, said Klinkhammer. In small towns on the prairie, even ones with big visions, like Howard, every little bit helps.

Resources

Howard, S.D.
Howard City Utilities
Heartland Consumers Power District
Broadwind Energy LLC
Howard Farmers’ Co-op
Miner County Community Revitalization
Integrated resource plan

People

Energy Services Bulletin Editor
Donna Klinkhammer

Source: ww2.wapa.gov/sites/western/es/pubs/esb/Pages/esb1.aspx

Author: Kevin Storie, Marketing Specialist, Energy Services; WAPA

Photo Diary: Infrared Workshop at HCPD

Earlier this week, The Snell Group conducted a two-day infrared (IR) camera workshop at Heartland’s headquarters. Heartland, Western Area Power Administration and Clean Energy Ambassadors sponsored the event, titled “Infrared Inspection for System Maintenance and Energy Audits.”

Workshop activities included an in-depth look at IR cameras, including comparing different makes, models and software. Participants also discovered techniques for getting the most information from IR inspections while sharpening their audit skills. Nineteen people participated in the class, including Andy Studer, utility manager for the city of Aurora, South Dakota, a Heartland customer.