Spp Utilities Propose Postage Stamp Rates For Wind Project Network Upgrade Costs

摘要

The costs of network upgrades for future wind projects serving load in Southwest Power Pool should be collected through a region-wide postage stamp rate, according to a handful of transmission-dependent utilities (TDUs).rnDuring a March 26 meeting of SPP's cost allocation working group (CAWG), a presentation by Arkansas Electric Cooperative, East Texas Electric Cooperative, Golden Spread Electric Cooperative, Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Lafayette Utilities System and Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority suggested that network upgrade costs for new wind resources deserve separate rate treatment.rnWind designated resources serving load in SPP under its open-access transmission tariff present unique challenges for allocating costs because wind facilities tend to be built in areas that are not directly associated with the load they will be serving, said the TDUs. Also, the accredited capacity of wind resources is significantly less than their rated output. As a consequence, the source zone for the project may be assigned a disproportionate share of the costs under SPP's existing allocation methods.rnSPP separately is developing tariff language for a postage stamp-type rate design that would assign the costs of economic upgrades of 345 kV or higher among all transmission customers based on load ratio (IF, 25 Feb, 8). SPP intends to develop the economic upgrade rate design tariff language over the next several months.