Weekly Wrap Up — May 4, 2022

This week, Clearing Up’s Dan Catchpole and CEM’s Abigail Sawyer talk about forming organized markets in the West, the latest in the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s corruption case, an update on the 2021 explosion at the 600 MW Russell City Energy Center natural gas-fired power plant, offshore wind development, and Energy West’s first reader mail!

What is People in Power – A NewsData Podcast?

NewsData's "People in Power" is an exciting new biweekly podcast that explores issues in the energy industry, featuring expert guests from a wide range of backgrounds. Hosted by veteran energy journalists Jason Fordney and Abigail Sawyer of California Energy Markets and including appearances by writers from sister publication Clearing Up, People in Power will explore trends such as development of a Western wholesale electricity trading market, the transition to a more electrified world of new infrastructure and transportation, renewables integration and reliability, wildfire response and mitigation, and many other topics. "People in Power" draws from an unprecedented pool of expertise and insight in a way never seen before! It's available on all major podcast platforms as well as at www.newsdata.com.

Intro:
Welcome to NewsData's Energy West — a podcast about the energy
industry today and where it's going tomorrow.

Dan Catchpole:
Welcome to NewsData's Energy West podcast.

I'm your host, Dan Catchpole, reporter with NewsData's Clearing
Up and my regular co-host Jason Fordney is out

today, so joining me is Abigail Sawyer, my colleague and
associate editor at California Energy Markets.

Abigail, how are you doing today?

Abigail Sawyer:
Doing well. Good to be here, Dan.

Dan Catchpole:
That's great. And Jason, now he's down in San Diego today, right?

He's at the...

That's right. Yeah, he's covering the CREPC-WIRAB meeting.

And, of course, everybody knows what CREPC-WIRAB stands for, so
I don't have to explain that at all.

Abigail Sawyer:
No.

Dan Catchpole:
Actually, I know the the entity, and I actually registered to and
I've been listening into

their meeting today, I had to go look it up.

So it is the Committee on Regional Electric Power, CREPC, and
the Western Interconnection

Regional Advisory Body, WIRAB.

So basically they bring together state regulators, agencies,
consumer advocates, power utilities, industry, blah, blah, blah,

other critical players in the energy industry in the western
United States and Canadian provinces.

And the agenda at this meeting is chock full of some really
interesting topics about organized markets,

renewable hydrogen, resource adequacy and so on.

So really looking forward to Jason's coverage, and I'll probably
be writing up some of it as well.

Abigail Sawyer:
Yeah, I'm glad we have somebody out there ready to actually meet
people face-to-face again and learn

what's happening because so much is going on and a lot really
happens in real time at these sorts of things.

So we're really glad Jason is able to make it.

I'm glad I can be here.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah, I'm excited to have you.

And so how's everything in San Francisco?

Abigail Sawyer:
Hi. It's nice, kind of windy today, a little cool.

We don't know what to expect with the weather anymore, but,
yeah, we get a little rain, and then all the moisture blows away.

So we'll see where that's going to take us.

Dan Catchpole:
I have to say, I love San Francisco.

You know, I grew up outside Boston, so it always kind of has an
East Coast city vibe to it.

Abigail Sawyer:
It does.

Dan Catchpole:
And I always appreciate that, so I love visiting.

I don't know when the next time I'm going to be down there is,
but I'll certainly give you a ring next time down there.

Abigail Sawyer:
Do that. Bring the kids.

Check out the Exploratorium.

Dan Catchpole:
The Exploratorium?

I don't know. What is that?

Abigail Sawyer:
Oh, it's this awesome interactive science museum.

So fun.

Check it out online.

Dan Catchpole:
Oh, that sounds amazing.

See, listeners, tune in for energy industry news and

tips on what to visit when you go visit San Francisco.

We've got everything.

Abigail Sawyer:
We've got local experts here in all sorts of capacities.

Dan Catchpole:
It's amazing. So I'm going to get us kicked off here with a story
about — speaking of market

formation. So 15 western utilities signed a letter recently
saying that they want options when it comes to joining a day

ahead market.

The letter says the 15 utilities have agreed to work with the
Southwest Power Pool over the next year to develop its market

plus proposal and that none of them will join either SPP's market
proposal or California

ISO's competing extended day ahead market proposal extended day
ahead market or EDAM.

So California ISO just released its EDAM straw proposal last
Thursday, April

28th. The letter was signed a few days earlier by nine northwest
utilities and another six major utilities

across the West.

So how a day ahead market is governed is one of the utility's
major concerns, among a list of other

issues.

The EDM proposal is built off CAISO's successful Western EIM, the
energy

imbalance market, which has 17 participants, current/active
participants, another five on the way.

It covers 11 states, serving about 85% of the load in the West,
and that's for short term

available energy to balance loads.

SPP's markets plus proposal, SPP expects to release a draft in
September, followed by

asking participants to make a financially binding commitments to
proceed in the first quarter of

2023. Last year, the Western Power Pool hired SPP to manage and
help

operate its Western Resource Adequacy Program, which allows
participating utilities to share

surplus capacity when demand is high and generation is tight.

So, Abigail, you just covered a story about organized markets in
Nevada.

Abigail Sawyer:
Well, yeah, actually, this pairs nicely because Nevada last week
had their first RTO Task Force meeting.

Essentially, a law passed in Nevada last year that actually
requires the state's major utility NV Energy, which is

a Warren Buffett Berkshire Hathaway owned utility to join an RTO
or other organized market by 2030.

But, you know, everyone's really looking toward that 2030 or
looking toward that Western RTO.

And legislation in Colorado also passed last year has similar
requirements for the large utilities in that

state. So people are getting serious in Nevada.

The Nevada task force met for the first time last week on
Tuesday on April 26th, and that brought 19

professionals, policy experts, politicians, labor, general
public

folks all together to hear about largely what they were hearing
about last week was transmission plans that are already underway.

Some transmission developers gave some presentations.

Some environmental organizations were there to talk about the
importance and the need to move toward regional

transmission organization to really make the best use of all
this renewable development.

So that was pretty exciting.

Things are starting to get real and they definitely discussed
the EDAM and the markets plus option.

You know, things have been happening in between California and
Arkansas where SPP is located.

So and where they're running the westernmost RTO right now.

So it was a pretty lively conversation and lots is going to
happen.

They're planning to get a report to the governor and legislature
in Nevada by the end of November.

So that'll be fun to see what unfolds.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah, two of the entities that signed on to that letter, NV
Energy and the public service

company of Colorado, Xcel Energy Colorado.

They are two of the signatories on that letter that I covered.

So, yeah, I mean, it is amazing to see how quickly the
conversation is moving ahead with organized markets.

I mean, I know this is what, the sixth, seventh, eighth, kind of
momentum building behind potential markets

and organized markets in the West.

And all of them have foundered previously.

But yeah, it seems like there is some real momentum here and
some maybe practicality,

pragmatism where folks realize that the needs of the realities
on the ground are going to help them get past some

of the issues that they have foundered on previously.

Abigail Sawyer:
Sure. I mean, yeah, you got to, things got to get real.

We've got to make the best use of the transmission that's there,
really, because it doesn't come on overnight.

That's one thing we all know, and not insignificant that ND
Energy and Xcel Colorado were

on that letter given that the law is behind them joining up when
you know for the decades over

. So yeah plenty happening.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah well, and speaking of plenty happening, the US Department of
Interior announced that it has

identified two areas off the Oregon coast for potential offshore
wind development.

The areas cover more than 1,800 square miles and represent a few
gigawatts of potential wind

energy development.

This is the first of its kind.

First identification of its kind at least off the Oregon coast.

There is one in California that The Department of Interior's
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is further along

with, in terms of opening that area up to offshore wind
development.

But both of these and a lot of similar efforts on the East Coast
to lease this area to wind developers

is part of the Biden administration's goal to have 30 gigawatts
of offshore wind energy in operation

by 2030.

I should say that's the Biden administration's goal.

These leasing efforts, especially on the East Coast and the
California thing, have been going on for several years under the

Obama and Trump administration.

Biden administration has really ratcheted up that goal.

Abigail Sawyer:
Yeah, they're putting some hard numbers on it in terms of dates
and goals.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah, and let's see, I'm going to do a stretch here on segueing
into our next story to highlight.

So speaking of water, you've got development.

We're going from offshore ocean water to clean water.

There's the latest — there's some interesting coverage from
Jason with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Abigail Sawyer:
Indeed, yeah, Jason.

Dan Catchpole:
Too much of a stretch there?

Abigail Sawyer:
Well, you know, it's a big umbrella LADWP, so why not?

So yeah, there was an important development in the story that
Jason Fordney has been covering for a couple of years in

CEM about corruption at LADWP involving its former general
manager, David Wright, who last week was

sentenced to six years in prison for accepting bribes.

So that was a big deal, the first punishment to take place in
this ongoing

scandal, which is pretty multifaceted, actually.

Jason's called this a tangled web series.

And in addition to the bribes that Wright pled guilty for,
accepting these bribes

from a lawyer, Paul Paradise, who got right to, get

the utility to accept a $30 million no-bid contract for
Paradise's company Aventador

Utility Solutions, which Wright also helped create and which
incidentally is named after some model

of Lamborghini. So if that doesn't just kind of scream corrupt.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah, seriously.

Keep a low profile.

Abigail Sawyer:
When a no-bid contract is going to a company named for a
Lamborghini, you know, you maybe ought to turn over a few more

pages. That's just a tip out there for anyone making policy d
ecisions

Dan Catchpole:
Pro tip.

Abigail Sawyer:
If anyone is scratching your head about that, you know.

So anyway Wright was sentenced last week to six years, but there
are a few more things going on

with that whole investigation, including this whistleblower from
Riverside Public Utilities where

Wright used to work.

He used to manage that.

And whistleblower, Jason Hunter, has spoken before with Jason
Fodney about Wright's

involvement there and some other corruption there that involved
illegal spending of funds through the Southern California Public

Power Authority. So that is still unfolding.

There are investigations underway, none of which are
straightforward.

So it's hard to summarize, but you really should come on over to
NewsData and look that up, because it's really

interesting to see some of this coming to a head, and the third
arm of the whole scandal is actually that there's a billing

scandal involving LADWP customers too.

Dan Catchpole:
It just keeps going.

And Jason has done a great job covering this, like you said,
tangled web.

His latest, so you had this story available at NewsData's
website, CEM.

And then he also had a podcast with Jason Hunter that just
dropped in the feed for our podcast.

Abigail Sawyer:
That's Right.

Dan Catchpole:
Listeners, go check that out.

Abigail Sawyer:
Exactly on. Yeah, it just came out Friday, and it's like a
half-hour interview.

So special episode of Energy West that looks into that.

Dan Catchpole:
Yeah. Some great material in that.

I really appreciate Jason's coverage overall.

Just fascinating story.

I didn't realize that about the Lamborghini.

That's amazing.

Abigail Sawyer:
It's a fun little tidbit.

And. Yeah, this is just like classic scandal, you know?

You couldn't make it up. It would be a little overblown.

So, you know, oceanside condos, fancy vacations, Lamborghinis,
whatever.

Dan Catchpole:
So go check it out.

Abigail Sawyer:
Yes. You thought utility reporting was boring.

Dan Catchpole:
Well, in a slower, you know, not to slow us down too much, but in
a less flashy

story. Some reporting this in our latest issue by K.C.

Mehaffey in the latest issue of Clearing Up.

PacifiCorp.

And Klamath River Renewable Corp.

want the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to hurry up with
its final environmental assessment for tearing down four dams on

the lower Klamath River.

PacifiCorp and Klamath River Renewal want to start removing the
dams by the beginning of 2024, so they're hoping

that the assessment's out by September.

And they expect removal to take about 20 minutes — or 20 minutes
(laughs), we wish — 20 months.

The dams provide less than 2% of PacifiCorp's power portfolio
and removing them

will restore more than 400 miles of salmon spawning and rearing
habitat.

Abigail Sawyer:
Wow.

Dan Catchpole:
So you can follow more coverage from this, read more about this
story and look for future coverage from K.C.

Mehaffey at Clearing Up.

Abigail Sawyer:
That's pretty cool. It sounds like a lot of bang for your buck
there.

Dan Catchpole:
Speaking of bangs...

You've got an update on an explosion down in California.

Abigail Sawyer:
So there was an explosion nearly a year ago at the Russell City
Energy Center, a 600 megawatt gas fired power plant in

Hayward, California, which is in the Bay Area over in the East
Bay.

And just last week, we had reporting from Linda Dailey Paulson
about the California Energy Commission at its April

26th meeting, having come up with a new approach for Calpine to
get that unit back

online. So we don't have any dates in here as to when exactly
that's planning to go up, but they did

have a series of actions that Calpine needs to take in order to
bring that unit

back into service.

And they were after this explosion last year, which happened
around midnight, fortunately, because it shot

debris out as far as 1,200 feet, and it hit a food trailer that
was

nearby that often serves some homeless folks and things like
that.

So being midnight, it didn't injure anybody, thank goodness, but
definitely caused some property damage and led to

an investigation. And here it was going right into peak summer.

So they did some things to patch stuff up and get the plant back
online.

But I believe not that unit.

So working toward a new recovery there to get another dose of
resources

into the summer mix, which is always increasingly tight
year-to-year it seems.

So that's kind of interesting.

Calpine, for their part, said they agreed to the CEC's
conditions.

They said they'll comply, but they don't agree to their
assessment of what the failure was.

They maintain, since it happened, that the issue was with the
design of this unit.

And they said that their failure is in signing off on that
design.

So I'm not sure exactly what they're going to do to address all
of that.

But we're going to try to get back into generating without
generating any more explosions, I think, is the overall aim

here.

Dan Catchpole:
Interesting. Yeah.

I mean figuring out what caused it and getting generation back
online, both are hugely

important. So what are you guys covering?

Anything you're covering this week that you can tell listeners
about?

Abigail Sawyer:
Well, some exciting stuff happening in California.

Late last week, California Governor Gavin Newsom said he is
actually looking at getting a share of the US Department

of Energy. $6 billion that has been recently put out there to
maybe shore up and, you know, use the

words "rescue aging nuclear reactors" for a Diablo Canyon in
California.

So that will definitely be something to look forward to on that
and see where that's headed.

Because we have the one nuclear reactor which Newsom has said
might be needed to meet our emissions

goals.

Dan Catchpole:
I mean, it's amazing.

Nuclear is getting a second wind here, second life, in terms of
all those renewables we're bringing online.

And I'm going to use that as a segue way into some coverage that
I've got in our upcoming issue of Clearing Up.

So Idaho Power, I've got two little tidbits here that are
related.

Idaho Power has asked state regulators in Idaho to approve its
plans to install 120

megawatts of battery storage, and which will be the first large
scale energy storage project in Idaho.

And then over in Oregon, Avangrid Renewables 200 megawatt Golden
Hills Wind Farm Project

has started commercial operations as of Friday, last Friday, and
its output is going to

Puget Sound Energy, which has a huge hole to fill as it
transitions to and decarbonize its power

supply in accordance to meet Washington State's clean energy
mandates.

Sorry, so I'll have more coverage on those in the upcoming issue
of Clearing Up.

And you can find more from me at Clearing Up and on Twitter
@DCatchpole

on Twitter. And actually, speaking of Twitter, I have our first
bit of listener news,

which is exciting.

Abigail Sawyer:
That is.

Dan Catchpole:
Please hit us up if you've got questions.

So this is from Micah Babbitt @MicahBabbitt on Twitter.

He asked me, "Just listen to the Weekly Wrap podcast.

Have been enjoying it." Thank you, Micah.

"I'd be curious to hear more info on Bitcoin miner activities in
Washington.

Seems like Texas has been capturing all of their demand recently
." I'd say, yeah, you know, it has been interesting to see the

drop off in applications and interest as these utilities with
super cheap electricity in

central Washington, a bunch of them have instituted or adopted
high load,

basically at higher rates to target.

Bitcoin mining, cryptocurrency mining.

They have had to kind of massage the criteria for the rates to
make sure

that they're not predatory or biased.

But it's essentially, a lot of these rates are built on high
load industries

that are unproven, that are not like established industries and
don't have a big capital investment

tying them.

Like you build an aluminum smelting plant, and you're not going
anywhere quickly, but you've got all these servers you can pack

up in the middle of the night.

So that's really caused a pretty significant drop off in the
interest.

But I mean, there's still some steady interest in central
Washington's.

I'll have to follow up on that.

I mean there have been some interesting developments like there
is one Bitcoin mining company that secured a contract with a

Canadian company with a dam, one of the hydroelectric plants in
central Washington.

And then yeah, so Micah, I will certainly follow up on that.

It's something that I need to kind of go back to and see what
the big picture is.

So I appreciate the question.

And yeah, look for more to come.

And as always, please hit us up if you've got questions,
comments, criticisms, what have you

. We like to hear it all.

So that's it for me for this week.

Abigail, do you have anything else?

Abigail Sawyer:
No, not really.

I just got to get back to reporting.

Like I said, look for more about the conference.

Jason will be back in the office later this week.

And if there's anything terribly exciting, he'll be sure to put
something up at @CEMnewsdata

on Twitter as well.

Dan Catchpole:
So yeah.

So you can find us online NewsData.com.

You guys are @CEMnewsdata on Twitter.

Clearing up is @CUnewsdata on Twitter.

So give us a follow.

If you like this podcast, please rate and review us.

It helps us show up higher in the search results on Apple
Podcasts or whatever

podcast platform that you're listening to us with.

And so that's it for me.

Abigail, you want to take us out?

Abigail Sawyer:
Sure. Yeah.

Look for us, like I said.

And thanks for listening.

We're good to be on here and sort of getting to know folks
virtually in this one-sided medium.

Dan Catchpole:
Let's make it two-sided.

Abigail Sawyer:
Well, yeah, let's do that.

Tweet at us and keep listening.

And of course, take a look at the full coverage in our
newsletters at NewsData.com.

Dan Catchpole:
See you here next week.

Abigail Sawyer:
Terrific. Right.

Bye.

Outro:
You've been listening to NewsData's Energy West, a podcast about
the energy industry today and where it's going

tomorrow.