The ISO identified the Gates and Round Mountain 500kV Dynamic Reactive Support transmission solutions through the 2018-2019 transmission planning process, which was approved by the ISO Board of Governors on March 27, 2019. These transmission solutions are now eligible for project sponsor selection in the Transmission Planning Process, Phase 3 Competitive Solicitation process as follows:
- Interested project sponsors must submit complete applications to finance, construct, own, operate, and maintain the Gates 500kV Dynamic Reactive Support project within the bid window commencing April 22 through July 12, 2019.
- Interested project sponsors must submit complete applications to finance, construct, own, operate, and maintain the Round Mountain 500kV Dynamic Reactive Support project within the bid window commencing April 22 through Aug. 23, 2019.
- Entities interested in collaborating with another entity may notify the ISO prior to May 3, 2019. The ISO will post a list on its webpage, including contact information, of entities interested in collaborating. Project sponsors are not required to notify the ISO to collaborate. After the bid window closes, there will be no further opportunity to collaborate.
The project descriptions, functional specifications, and key selection factors for the 500kV Dynamic Reactive Support projects are available on the 2018-2019 transmission planning webpage at http://www.caiso.com/planning/Pages/TransmissionPlanning/2018-2019TransmissionPlanningProcess.aspx.
The 2018-2019 Transmission Planning Process, Phase 3 Competitive Solicitation Schedule for these projects is available on the process webpage linked above. Note that the schedule assumes the engineering review necessary to define the termination of the Round Mountain 500kV Dynamic Reactive Support Project will be complete, and a revised functional specification will be posted on or before May 10, 2019.
The Transmission Project Sponsor Application, which includes the instructions and data requirement descriptions, has been updated and is available on the Transmission Planning webpage at http://www.caiso.com/planning/Pages/TransmissionPlanning/Default.aspx under the Transmission planning documents/Project sponsor documents subheadings. Project sponsors must use the most recent version of the application when preparing their proposal.
Please submit complete applications as per the instructions in the Transmission Project Sponsor Application before the closing dates specified above. The ISO will acknowledge receipt of the application to the applicant within three (3) business days.
More information on Phase 3 of the transmission planning process is available in the Transmission Planning Process Business Practice Manual, which is available at https://bpmcm.caiso.com/Pages/BPMDetails.aspx?BPM=Transmission%20Planning%20Process.