Power System Planning Process and Issues

ISO New England Inc. (ISO-NE) is a not-for-profit corporation responsible for the reliable operation of New England's bulk power generation and transmission system. ISO-NE also administers the region's wholesale electricity markets and manages the comprehensive planning of the regional bulk power system. The planning process is open and transparent and involves advisory input from all regional stakeholders, particularly members of the Planning Advisory Committee (PAC). Each year, ISO-NE prepares a comprehensive Regional System Plan (RSP). These 10-year plans include forecasts of future load (i.e., the demand for electricity measured in megawatts, MW) and how the system "as-planned" can meet that load, by adding supply or demand-side resources and/or transmission. Each plan addresses system-wide needs and the needs in specific areas to ensure the reliability of the system, as well as compliance with national and regional planning standards, criteria, and procedures. Each plan also includes information that serves as input for improving the design of the markets and the economic performance of the system. In addition, these plans summarize the coordination of ISO-NE's short- and long-term plans with neighboring systems as well as some initiatives and other actions that ISO-NE, transmission owners (TOs), other market participants, state officials, policymakers, and other regional stakeholders can take to meet the needs of the system. The ISO New England Regional System Plan includes discussions of the region's need for fuel diversity, availability and deliverability and the impacts that fuel use can have on the environment. This paper summarizes the planning process, types of technical analyses, and emerging policy issues that will affect power system planning in New England.