Thread by @ascottkoala

The transmission system failure in Southeast LA seems like part of a general controversy related to @Entergy, but it's just the latest entry in a lengthy pattern of events spanning decades.

This thread may be a dang Tolstoy novel, but this is only a brief Tweetstory 1/26

Let me first set the stage for this drama. In the late 90’s all interesting things were happening in the utility industry - deregulation in some states, mergers between smaller utilities in response, and who could forget - Enron ferc.gov/sites/default/… 2/26

1999- @FERC Order 2000 was issued, which sought to organize electricity markets over in a given transmission grid territory to support reliable transfer and delivery of electricity to consumers, with market competitive pricing. ferc.gov/electric/power… 3/26

@misoenergy was the first Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) to be approved by @FERC in 2001. @Entergy vied for that distinction, but the commission did not approve because their proposal didn't qualify as an RTO energymarketers.com/documents/rt01… 4/26

2001-’03 @Entergy joined in two more proposals being pitched by Southern Company, and other southern utilities for a Southeastern RTO. Both failed to garner state and @FERC approval over governance issues. It appeared the proposal was merely a merger of big utilities. 5/26

‘06, FERC orders Entergy to put its grid under partial 3rd party oversight. This agreement, deemed ‘experimental’ by the commission, ultimately did little to satisfy numerous power plant and regulator complaints about anticompetitive behavior. 6/26

In ‘09, a meeting was held with various Entergy state regulators and FERC in Charleston to discuss this ‘experiment’, and whether it was supporting transmission development. Independent Power Producers complained that it was not spp.org/documents/1266…
7/26

‘10 - Amidst the concerns expressed by regulators and competitors about Entergy’s ability to proactively and comprehensively develop transmission capacity, it was revealed the company was under investigation by the US DOJ over antitrust concerns jacksonfreepress.com/news/2010/oct/… 8/26

‘11 - @Entergy proposes joining MISO, citing its superior benefits over SPP membership. It is unclear how this arrangement is considered superior, except possibly in terms of maintaining a service territory with minimal connections to competition. reuters.com/article/utilit… 9/26

‘11 - Entergy and transmission only company ITC Holdings announce a joint agreement under which Entergy would divest its transmission operation and then merge the business into a subsidiary called ITC Midsouth. (to be continued) itc-holdings.com/newsroom/newsr… 10/26

‘12 - @TheJusticeDept - 'Entergy’s commitments to obtain membership in an RTO and divest its transmission system to a third party with the incentive to make efficient transmission investments are significant steps towards restoring competition' justice.gov/opa/pr/justice… 11/26

(cont.) - “the division has been examining allegations that Entergy has engaged in exclusionary conduct in its four-state utility service area spanning parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. That investigation remains open.” 12/26

‘12 - Final regulatory approval for Entergy’s integration into MISO is received from the Mississippi Public Service Commission and NOLA City Council. reuters.com/article/utilit… 13/26

‘13 - Entergy agrees to pay $975,000 to settle a FERC claim relates to 15 NERC violations
related to its transmission system. energyenvironmentallawadviser.com/2013/04/ferc-i… 14/26

‘13 - Entergy’s grid integration into MISO is approved by FERC. The same month, the MS Public Service Comm. rejects a proposal from Entergy to divest their transmission business, finding it would cost MS ratepayers $11.6 mil. annually for 30 years. transmissionhub.com/articles/2013/… 15/26

‘16 - MISO’s annual planning cycle MTEP16 selects a number of projects aimed at addressing grid congestion within MISO South in ‘load pockets’. One of these projects is the $73.9 million Waterford to Churchill line. 16/26

‘16 - Entergy proposes the $869 million dollar St. Charles Power Station gas plant near this proposed line, in part, to address the Downstream of Gypsy load pocket.

[Spoiler Alert] Here’s the plant today, and as for the line, it was withdrawn for economic reasons 17/26

‘16 - Union Power Station, a power plant owned by independent power producer Entegra TC, is acquired by Entergy subsidiaries in LA, NOLA and AR. Previous to the acquisition the plant couldn't sell power economically due to transmission constraints powermag.com/entergy-subsid… 17/26

‘17 - A public hearing for Entergy NOLA proposed 128MW New Orleans Power Station Gas Plant (NOPS) draws comments of opposition from groups advocating for grid upgrades, while a crowd emblazened in orange shirts show monolithic support for the plant thelensnola.org/2017/10/20/pum… 18/26

‘18 - After the approval by City Council of NOPS, Entergy NOLA was found by press, through obtained emails from senior leadership to have hired paid actors through a subcontractor to show support in public meetings for the plant. thelensnola.org/2018/05/04/act… 19/26

'19 - Entergy purchases 810MW Choctaw Generating Facility from GenOn Energy. Like Union Power Station, this purchase of a distressed asset was nearly half the cost of a new power plant and did not have significant transmission connection businesswire.com/news/home/2018… 20/26

‘19 - S.B. 1938 known as a ‘Right of First Refusal’ (ROFR) signed into law, despite concerns from the DOJ about it blocking competitive transmission development, and putting the Hartburg-Sabine transmission project in Entergy territory in limbo. justice.gov/atr/page/file/… 21/26

‘19 - ENO sues the NOLA City Council regarding a change in the utility’s ROE and a $1 million fine levied on the utility related to reliability. documentcloud.org/documents/6572… 22/26

'20 - Hurricane Laura strikes Lake Charles, creates massive transmission and distribution outages, triggering 'load shed' throughout the 'WOTAB' load pocket expanding into Texas to preserve the grid in MISO South. beaumontenterprise.com/news/article/E… 23/26

'21 - Winter Storm Uri causes MISO to initiate load shed for the entire AR, TX, LA and MS. Entergy's full four state territory. The amount of load shed by subsidiary Entergy New Orleans was more than 3 times the amount requested. nola.com/news/politics/… 24/26

‘21 - Hurricane Ida strikes Southeast Louisiana, triggering power outages for 1.2 million. 210 transmission lines out of service and all 8 lines into NOLA out of service. NOPS & other power plants sit idle following the storm for days or weeks
nbcnews.com/news/us-news/h… 25/26

'21 - The question is - will we wait for the next major power outage event in the US? Bowing down to the market power of a major utility which follows their own self interest, or will we plan an efficient and modern #cleanenergygrid to adapt to #climatechange in #MISOSouth? 26/26