ERCOT Transmission: Board Adopts New View

May 06, 2024

ERCOT is changing its transmission planning processes to adapt to the evolving grid and exploring new opportunities to stay ahead of the growth curve.  At its April meeting, the board of directors discussed the need for a new era of transmission system planning to manage growing load. Demand is escalating as new large loads are added to the ERCOT system faster and in greater sizes than historical interconnections. The current generation mix is more diverse than previous portfolios, can be built faster, and is more geographically disbursed from load centers.

The previous Regional Transmission Plan does not allow ERCOT to factor in unsigned load.  A U.S. House bill requires ERCOT to include prospective load identified by transmission service providers. This has led to a new view of rapid load growth that is about 40 GW greater than last year’s forecast.

Transmission projects typically require three to five years to be energized.

For more: https://www.ercot.com/files/docs/2024/04/22/5%20CEO%20Update.pdf