Order Instituting Ruling (OIR) on Planning Reserve Margin (PRM) R.08-04-012
DRA is actively involved in this proceeding to help the Commission to review, and modify to the extent found to be appropriate, the planning reserve margin (PRM) used for purposes of Long-Term Procurement Planning (LTPP) and Resource Adequacy (RA) programs. The goal of this proceeding is to bring greater policy clarity and certainty to California's electricity market and to ensure that our LTPP and RA programs are designed to yield the level of reliability that ratepayers demand. Among the items DRA will review and make comments on are the assumptions and methodology used to set the PRM, whether to recalibrate the PRM periodically, whether to establish a single PRM that applies throughout the service territories of utilities under the CPUC jurisdiction, whether to establish separate short-term and long-term PRMs.
Workshops for phase 1 of this proceeding are planned for June 25th and 26th, 2008. A decision covering the year 2010-11 is expected to be issued by the end of 2008. Phase 2 of this proceeding is expected to continue in 2009.
Links to recent documents:
DRA’s PHC Statement
OIR on Resource Adequacy (RA) R.05-12-025
This Rulemaking was designed to ensure reliable and cost-effective electricity supply in California through refinement and augmentation of adopted program of resource adequacy requirements (RAR). Under this program, established pursuant to Decision (D.) 04-01-050, D.04-10-035, and D.05-10-042, investor-owned utilities (IOUs) as well as the electric service providers (ESPs) and community choice aggregators (CCAs) operating within the IOUs' service territories (collectively, load serving entities or LSEs) are required to demonstrate that they have acquired the resources needed to meet their forecasted retail customer load plus a reserve margin.
A major issue in this proceeding is design of capacity markets. DRA is part of a coalition of parties advocating bilateral trading of capacity with an eventual goal of transitioning to an energy-based market. The generators and some utilities are advocating central capacity markets. The Commission has not issued a decision on this issue as of June 3, 2008.
Upon issuing a decision on this issue this OIR will be closed and a new OIR discussed below will continue the work on resource adequacy.
Links to Recent documents:
DRA’s Motion to supplement the Record
Bilateral Trading Group (BTG) Reply Comments on Phase 2, Track 2
OIR on Resource Adequacy (RA) R.08-01-025
This rulemaking is in continuation of the Commission’s efforts to ensure the availability of reliable, cost-effective electricity service in California through resource adequacy (RA) procurement obligations applicable to load serving entities (LSEs) as defined in Pub. Util. Code § 380(j). The OIR intends to establish a forum to:
- Review the Local Capacity Requirements (LCRs) determined by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) beginning with the 2009 LCR study year.
- Establish local procurement obligations to be met by LSEs based on LCRs reviewed and approved by the Commission.
- Consider how the LCR study process, parameters, methods, and assumptions might be improved over time.
- Consider modifications to the various elements of the existing RA program, including rules for counting the qualifying capacity of various resource types, load forecasting protocols, compliance and reporting, and related refinements to the program.
- Consider the amended proposal of Calpine Corporation, et al., for a standardized resource adequacy contract and associated resource obligations.
DRA provided comments on preliminary matters pertaining to the scope, schedule, and administration of the proceeding on February 7, 2008, and replies on February 14, 2008. Workshops were held on March 24, and 25, 2008. Proposed Decision (PD) was issued on May 27, 2008. Comments on due on June 26th. DRA may file comments on the PD.
Links to recent documents:
PD Adopting Local Reliability Requirements
DRA Reply Comments on Phase 1 issues