Electric transmission lines cross a field in central North Dakota. (Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)
State utility regulators have filed a complaint with a federal agency, saying a regional electrical grid planning group’s system for assessing power line needs is misguided and will cost North Dakota ratepayers money.
The North Dakota Public Service Commission on July 30 filed the complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The complaint is against the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which manages a regional electric grid that serves 15 states, including part of North Dakota, and parts of Manitoba, Canada.
In December, MISO revealed a plan for 24 transmission upgrade projects with an estimated combined cost of $22 billion.
But the PSC says the group has changed the way it evaluates the costs and benefits of transmission projects to the detriment of North Dakota.
During a meeting Thursday, Commissioner Jill Kringstad said the 24 MISO projects would help some states achieve renewable energy goals but pass some of the cost on to North Dakota ratepayers.
She called the costs “unjust and unreasonable” for North Dakota.
Commissioners estimated North Dakota’s share of the projects at $5 per month for an average customer, which the customer would pay for decades.
Of the 22 projects, two reach into the eastern edge of North Dakota. The rest of the projects are in the northern tier of MISO states, from eastern South Dakota to western Ohio.
Christmann said his objections aren’t over individual projects, but about how MISO changed its method to justify the projects.
“There is nothing to justify the kind of costs imposed on our people,” Christmann said in an interview.
North Dakota received support in its complaint from Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Montana.
The southern states are not being asked to help pay for the project in the northern MISO area but Louisiana Public Service Commissioner Davante Lewis objects to the cost-benefit analysis that was used.
The cost-benefit allocations used in MISO-North might some day come down to MISO-South, Lewis said.
MISO spokesperson Brandon Morris confirmed the cost allocation for the plan is on a subregional basis across the North and Central regions and does not include MISO South.
“MISO is reviewing the filing submitted to FERC,” Morris said. “The (proposed) portfolio was developed through a collaborative process that included substantial stakeholder engagement, including more than 300 meetings and feedback on the solutions and benefits. The portfolio supports reliability and the future needs of the system.”
While it’s not uncommon for state regulators to bring objections to MISO’s governing board, it is rare for states to join forces for a federal complaint on an issue that doesn’t apply to all members, Lewis said.
In a news release, the North Dakota PSC said its concerns were brought up to MISO during the stakeholder process but were not addressed.
MISO has 20 days from the date of the filing to file a response or request an extension with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Louisiana Illuminator reporter Wesley Muller contributed to this report.
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