SPP Seeks Industry Experts to Assess Competitive Transmission Project Proposals

LITTLE ROCK, AR--(Marketwired - June 23, 2016) - Southwest Power Pool, Inc. (SPP) is accepting applications to serve on an independent panel to review transmission construction proposals in 2017.

In response to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Order 1000, SPP formed a panel of industry experts that will review, rank, and score proposals for competitive transmission projects approved for construction by the SPP board of directors.

Interested candidates must have expertise in at least one of the following areas as it relates to electric transmission:

1. Engineering design
2. Project management and construction
3. Operations
4. Rate design and analysis
5. Finance

Applications will be accepted through September 1, 2016. Selection of panelists -- based on a recommendation by the SPP oversight committee -- will be approved by the SPP board of directors later this year.

These contract positions will be compensated through a monthly retainer and hourly rate.

In April 2016, the SPP board of directors accepted the Industry Expert Panel's (IEP) recommendation naming the designated transmission owner of SPP's first-ever competitively bid transmission project. "We are proud of our initial IEP process, having now seen it all the way through for the first time," said Paul Suskie, SPP's executive vice president of regulatory policy and general counsel. "Now we look forward to the selection of our next panelists and to the refinement of our process based on lessons learned and feedback from our stakeholders."

More information, including the panelist application and instructions, is at SPP.org under Engineering > Transmission Owner Selection Process > Industry Expert Panel (IEP). Interested parties may also contact Ben Bright, Manager of Regulatory Processes, at bbright@spp.org.

About Southwest Power Pool, Inc.

Southwest Power Pool, Inc. manages the electric grid and wholesale energy market for the central United States. As a regional transmission organization, the nonprofit corporation is mandated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to ensure reliable supplies of power, adequate transmission infrastructure and competitive wholesale electricity prices. Southwest Power Pool and its diverse group of member companies coordinate the flow of electricity across 60,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines spanning 14 states. The company is headquartered in Little Rock, Ark. Learn more at www.spp.org.