View Complete Issue - American Public Power Association

are going up much faster in the RTO markets. We also understand that power plant constructioncosts are going up; public power utilities are building power plants too.”“APPA welcomes Chairman Kelliher’s remarks that the commission will continue to makeimprovements in both the centralized RTO markets and bilateral markets,” Nipper said. “We alsocommend the commission for planning to hold a technical conference on the proposals by theAmerican Forest and Paper Association and Portland Cement Association to reform the RTO-runmarkets. As [APPA President and CEO] Mark Crisson told state regulators, a collaborativeprocess where all stakeholders can share and shape ideas is a better approach than FERCplaying a game of ‘bring me a rock.’” [In that game, without being given any guidelines, you keepbringing rocks to someone until they get one they want. See the Feb. 20 Public Power Daily.]“We remain disappointed that the commission continues to take a narrow, restricted approach toits obligation to ensure that electricity rates are just and reasonable,” Nipper said. “And we see nofactual support for assertions that these incredibly complicated markets are operating well.”The commission’s primary proposal for improving long-term power contracting in RTO-runmarkets would require RTOs to set aside a portion of their Web sites for market participants topost offers to buy or sell power on a long-term basis.Proposed changes to RTOs’ market monitoring rules largely track the recent settlement betweenPJM and its market monitor, with provisions on access to data, sufficient resources and reportingdirectly to the RTO board. The proposed rule would remove market monitors from administeringmarket mitigation measures.The proposed rule would reduce the time period before RTO market bid and offer data arereleased to the public, the commission said. Details were not available as Public Power Weeklywent to press. APPA has recommended that the bid and offer data, with generation sourcesidentified, be released within one day.On RTO responsiveness, the proposed rule calls for RTOs to adopt principles to ensureinclusiveness, fairness among diverse interests, representation of minority positions, and ongoingresponsiveness.Comments on the proposed rule, Wholesale Competition in Regions with Organized ElectricMarkets, are due 45 days after it is published in the Federal Register.Schori calls on utilities, energy consumers to worktogether to reduce demand, environmental impactsElectric utilities need to work with their customers to change energy consumption behaviors thatadversely impact the environment, the general manager of the Sacramento Municipal UtilityDistrict told a national conference Wednesday.“They want cleaner air, but they are reluctant to turn down their air conditioners on a hot day inJuly and they love their flat screen TVs,” said SMUD General Manager Jan Schori at the NationalElectricity Delivery Forum in Washington, D.C.“It is time for the utility industry to move beyond customer satisfaction,” she said. “Now, we needto ask them to understand more fully the impact their energy use has on the grid and on theenvironment. We need to engage them and help them, and get them to help us work on local airquality issues and lower greenhouse gas emissions.”