On June 19, 2014, FERC conditionally accepted the California Independent System Operator Corporation’s (“CAISO”) proposed creation of a real-time market for imbalance energy, referred to as the Energy Imbalance Market (“EIM”).  The result of a broad stakeholder process in the Western U.S., the EIM provides a venue where participants are able to buy and sell five-minute real-time energy to meet energy imbalance needs.  The EIM allows for neighboring balancing authorities to voluntarily participate on the CAISO EIM platform. 

In a related order, FERC also conditionally accepted certain revisions to PacifiCorp’s open-access transmission tariff to allow for the utility’s participation in the market.  PacifiCorp would become the first neighboring balancing authority participant in the EIM.  According to officials at CAISO and PacifiCorp, the EIM is on track to launch in October of this year.

To view the EIM Order, click here.

To view the PacifiCorp Order, click here.

To view more detailed information regarding the proposed operation of the EIM, visit the CAISO EIM informational site by clicking here.

 

 

*Disclosure – Troutman Sanders LLP represented PacifiCorp in this FERC proceeding