California Grid Operator Adopts Policies to Support Grid Reliability

by APPA News
January 3, 2023

California Independent System Operator governing entities in December adopted policies and tools to support system reliability.

The ISO’s Board and Western Energy Imbalance Market Governing Body approved the Energy Storage Enhancements and Resource Sufficiency Energy Enhancements initiatives in a joint meeting.

Both proposals are scheduled to be implemented by this summer when extreme heat can create high
demand for energy resources during critical hours.

With nearly 5,000 megawatts of storage resources now connected to the grid, the storage enhancements proposal reflects the ISO’s continuing work with industry stakeholders to refine its policies ensuring batteries are accurately priced in the real-time market and fully charged to provide energy when needed, CAISO said.

The Energy Storage Enhancements proposal adopted by the Board and WEIM Governing Body encompassed several refinements, including:

• Improved accounting of a battery’s state of charge, certifying the resources are
  available when needed; and
• Improved tools for exceptional dispatch to make sure the resources are
  adequately compensated so the batteries’ energy is available to meet load during
  peak hours.

The Board and Governing Body also approved the WEIM Resource Sufficiency Evaluation Enhancement Phase 2 initiative to make sure the WEIM entities have enough capacity and energy in the real-time market to meet their demand before voluntarily transferring electricity to other participants.