6.6. ERMUSR 01-11-2005 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

FERC Should Address the Concerns Of Network Service Customers The O ~T~IS of FERC jurisdictional TOs require them Lo plan for the transmission needs of their net~~~~rk customers. Some O_~'I~"h net~~cork customers, however, belie~~e that. their loads and resources have not been treated equitably or °comparat~rl}~" to those of their TOs in transmission panning and facilities construction. y~1`hile net~~~ork customers pay their load ratio st-rare of u-ansrnission system costs, they can be put. on the "margin" by their FERC:-jurisdictional TOs ~~-hen it comes to transmission planning. Some have been told thtiy must pay the Iirll cost of all additional transmission facilities nc°edcd to connect their new resources or to serve their increased loads, even when they believe that the TO's own loads ~~~~ould very likely benefit. from such facilities as well The joint transmission planning that network customers had hoped would carne Keith the Ordc°r No. 888 0.~1TT has not materialized. Similarly, generation developers have had difficulty gaining access to the u,ansrnission system in some regions, and in traving their generation projects designated as FERC Could do much to assure ntit~~~ork resources. adequate transmission infra- structure development in non- FERC could do mach w assrirc adequate transmission RTU reJI011S Of the COUntry infrastructure development in non-R"I'O regions of the merely byvlgorouSly enforcing country n~~erely by eigorousle enforcing the joint planning the joint planning and and transmission constrt.iction obligations FERC-jurisdictional transmi$sion ConstruCt1011 `IOs have under their o~an existing OATTs. In so doing, obligations FERC-jurisdictional FF,RC could promote the concept of joint participation in TOS have under thelrOwn transmission systems and construction projects by both 'I'Os eXlSting OATTS. and their net~~~ork service custorncrs on a proportional basis, to reduce the capital outlays required by FERC-jurisdictional TOs, and to make transmission o~,~nersl-rip more broadly available to load-stirring utilities in these regions. Such joint. participation in transmission system and facilities ownership is a logical extension of FERC's current transmission system cost-allocation method, under which neu~-ark service customers ah-tiadl' pay their load ratio share of their TO's fixed transmission system costs, day after day, year after year. 24 Restructuring at the Crossroads: FERC Electric Policy Reconsidered