MISO report analyzes wind, solar resources on grid system
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) published an analysis of the increasing amounts of wind and solar resources within both the MISO grid and the broader bulk electric system.
The report, called the Renewable Integration Impact Assessment (RIIA), developed the RIIA as an informational study to identify complexity inflection points associated with increasing levels of renewable integration. The analysis found that significantly higher levels of renewables penetration can be achieved, but it will require planning and considerable regional cooperation to accomplish.
The RIIA also identifies potential weak points in the system that would need to be addressed as renewables increase.
“MISO, our members, and the entire industry are poised on the precipice of great change as we are being asked to rapidly integrate far more renewable resources,” MISO’s President and Chief Operating Officer Clair Moeller said. “Given our regional Reliability Imperative, MISO must act quickly, deliberately, and collaboratively to ensure that the planning, markets, operations, and systems keep pace with the changes. We can achieve great change together.”
The RIIA will inform MISO’s Response to the Reliability Imperative. The Response to the Reliability Imperative is a broad range of efforts MISO is pursuing to ensure the system remains reliable as the region’s generation and transmission resources continue to evolve. The report is meant to assist stakeholders in weighing plans and policies that will further change the future grid’s resource mix.
“We believe it will take transformational change, including redefined markets and planning processes, to enable efficient and reliable operations in the future,” MISO’s EVP Market & Grid Strategies Richard Doying said. “Coordinated action amongst all stakeholders will be necessary to facilitate participants’ decarbonization goals and plans for higher levels of renewable generation.”
MISO will host a workshop on March 3 from 2 – 4 pm ET to provide an overview of the report and discuss its conclusions.
