The largest electricity supplier in the Pacific Northwest on Friday finalized its decision to join a market being formed by Arkansas-based Southwest Power Pool, rather than one out of California.
The choice by the Bonneville Power Administration — a federal agency that distributes hydropower from the Columbia River Basin — sets the stage for the West to be bifurcated between two day-ahead markets after decades of trying to organize the region.
Joining SPP’s Markets+ operation will allow BPA to buy and sell power on a day-ahead market with a wider footprint of trading partners. In a letter Friday announcing the decision, BPA Administrator and CEO John Hairston said the decision “offers an opportunity to ensure a reliable, abundant and affordable energy supply for consumers in the Northwest.”
A broader day-ahead market is expected to lower costs and increase reliability by offering participants a larger pool of resources to buy from. It is also likely to boost low-cost renewable power.
