Southwest Power Pool says grid savings cross the $1 billion mark
by October 12, 2016 2:57 pm 185 views
Little Rock grid operator Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) recently said wholesale electricity markets have reduced the cost of electricity by more than $1 billion since 2014 across the regional transmission organization’s 14-state footprint.
SPP’s Integrated Marketplace is the mechanism through which the grid operator facilitates the sale and purchase of electricity to ensure cost-effective electric reliability across the regional grid. In March 2014, SPP became the first RTO to its integrated marketplace on time and on budget, company officials said.
In the first year of operation, SPP said the power marketplace delivered $380 million in net savings to SPP’s member companies and their customers, paying for itself in less than a year. The markets have provided market participants hundreds of millions of dollars in net savings annually and in September 2016 crossed the $1 billion threshold.
“Our markets provide tremendous value to the SPP region; that’s something we’ve known and demonstrated since they launched,” said SPP vice president of operations Bruce Rew. “The billion-dollar mark is an exciting milestone, and I’m proud that we reached it so quickly.”
Savings from SPP’s markets make up just a portion of the overall value the RTO affords its members. These and other services – including transmission expansion planning, reliability coordination and training.
The milestone comes just weeks before SPP celebrates the 75th anniversary of its founding. The organization formed in December 1941 when 11 companies pooled resources to ensure power flowed without interruption to Jones Mill outside Malvern, Ark. – a critical producer of aluminum in support of the American war effort during World War II.
SPP will mark the occasion of its anniversary with a celebratory gala for its stakeholders on Oct. 24, following by the publication of a book and a short documentary chronicling its 75-year history.