The EIPC was
awarded funding from The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in 2010 to to
prepare analyses of transmission requirements under a broad range
of alternative futures and develop long-term interconnection-wide
transmission expansion plans in response to the alternative resource
scenarios.
The DOE
funding enabled EIPC to perform analysis and planning for the Eastern
Interconnection in a transparent and collaborative manner, open to
participation by state and federal officials, representatives from
independent system operators (ISOs) and regional transmission
organizations (RTOs), utilities, and relevant stakeholder bodies or
non-government organizations (NGOs), including appropriate entities in
Canada, with an approach to ensure consensus among stakeholders on key
issues.
The Keystone
Center is partnering with EIPC to facilitate its extensive stakeholder process
within the Eastern Interconnection. The scenarios developed and technical
analysis undertaken in this process will be reviewed and discussed in a forum
open to all interested policy makers and stakeholders. The Keystone Center has
conducted many dialogues and roundtable discussions to further the goal of more
transparent and participatory government interaction, with the EIPC partnership
being the latest example of Keystone’s “innovative public engagement.”
Charles
River Associates (“CRA”) is partnering with EIPC to perform the economic
modeling of the eight Futures in Phase I, and the production cost modeling of
the alternate transmission options in Phase II. Many of the most important
policy, regulatory, and commercial questions facing stakeholders in energy
markets can only be addressed through rigorous analysis of possible market outcomes.
CRA has developed proprietary analytic tools to help clients
address these questions. With years of industry experience and exceptional
strength in analytics, CRA consultants offer management and economic expertise
in every phase of the electricity production cycle and have pioneered
techniques and models that have become industry standards.
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This work
was divided into two phases. The work for Phase I, lasting
from 2010 to 2011, consisted of aggregating regional transmission expansion
plans into a Roll-up Report, performing interregional analyses, and
conducting macroeconomic analyses on 8 Futures. Phase II, from
2012 to 2013, will comprise 3 transmission scenario analyses, including
reliability and production cost modeling of alternate transmission options.
Task 0: Project Management (periodic)
Task 1: Initiate Project
(Governance and Selection of SSC)
Task 2: Integrate Regional Plans
(Roll-up Report)
Task 3: Production Cost Analysis
for Roll-up Report (cancelled)
Task 4: Macroeconomic Futures
Definition (SSC)
Task 5: Macroeconomic Analysis (Charles River Associates)
Task 6: Expansion Scenario Concurrence (and Phase I Report)
Task 7: Interregional
Transmission Options Development
Task 8: Reliability Review
Task 9: Production Cost Analysis
of Scenarios
Task 10: Generation and
Transmission Cost Development
Task 11: Review of Results (and
comment on draft report)
Task 12: Phase II Report