Dive Brief:

• Rocky Mountain Power wants the change the rules in Wyoming on how power purchase contracts are set up for small renewable projects.
• The PacifiCorp utility division is in a contract dispute with Wasatch Wind, which plans to build an 80-MW wind farm and sell its output to Rocky Mountain Power under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA).
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruled in December that Rocky Mountain Power could not include in the contract a provision that would let the utility curtail power from the wind farm.
• But the utility believes the FERC decision opened the door to a contract that offered two sets of power prices: a low one if no new transmission lines are built and a higher price if more transmission lines are built. The utility argues that there is not enough existing transmission to completely handle the proposed wind farm.

Dive Insight:

In regions without competitive markets, PURPA requires utilities to enter into power purchase agreements with qualifying facilities, which can be no bigger than 80 MW. The contracts are based on rate formulas established by each state regulatory commission.

Western utilities, most notably Idaho Power, have been pushing back on entering into these contracts. While Idaho has been the focus of the PURPA issue in recent years, other states are involved, too. The dispute between Wasatch Wind and Rocky Mountain Power is one more example of this conflict.