On July 15, 2022, the Western Interstate Energy Board (WIEB) and the Western Power Pool (WPP) approved a memorandum of understanding outlining a conditional agreement through which WIEB may provide the technical expertise, staff resources, and office space necessary to support the Western Resource Adequacy Program Committee of State Representatives (WRAP-COSR).
Need for Technical & Staff Support
WPP is on their way to stand up the WRAP, the first-of-its-kind program to address resource adequacy issues and ensure reliability in the West. WPP staff has worked with a variety of stakeholders, including state regulators and energy office officials, to develop a robust governance and program design suitable for the region. The governance design of the WRAP consists of multiple organizational groups of stakeholders, such as the COSR. The COSR will consist of representatives from the Western states and provinces, and these members will be responsible for providing perspectives on various matters pertaining to WRAP governance and operations, such as determination of a regional planning reserve margins and the capacity contributions of various electricity generating technologies. To perform their duties efficiently, the COSR will require technical support and staff expertise that will inform them of new developments to the WRAP and other important issues.
WPP and WIEB Response
WIEB has a strong rapport with the Western states and provinces and regularly provides support to other state and provincial committees, such as the Western Energy Imbalance Market (WEIM) Body of State Regulators. WIEB’s support of this group has been impactful to its members and has led to stronger engagement in WEIM initiatives and beyond. As the administrator of the WRAP, WPP has partnered with WIEB to provide this technical support and staff expertise to the COSR members ahead of WRAP implementation, ensuring that the COSR has the appropriate resources.
Memorandum of Understanding
With this intent, the WPP staff worked with WIEB to draft, discuss, and enter a memorandum of understanding, setting forth the principles under which WIEB would provide the resources needed to support the ongoing efforts of the WRAP-COSR. WPP will be working with participants of the WRAP to fund this agreement by the end of 2023 and ahead of WRAP implementation. During this period, WIEB will continue to support efforts to coordinate with Western state and provincial representatives as WPP works to develop the WRAP.
View the WIEB-WPP MOU here.
If you have any questions about this agreement please contact Gia Anguiano (ganguiano@westernenergyboard.org)