Grid Operator Says It Can't Wait for Consensus

In the midst of a California Independent System Operator-led session called to improve relations with energy traders and other market participants, Yakout Mansour, CAISO chief executive officer, announced that the grid operator will propose changes to the market without waiting for consensus, adding that there will be strict time limits on action. "The lights are going to be out at some time. We can't wait for perfect consensus. We're needing you to move on," Mansour said August 2. The announcement came at a time when the grid operator is trying to change course and attempting to include more stakeholder input. CAISO staff members Don Fuller, vice-president, external relations, and Tom Doughty, director, client relations, were attempting to reassure stakeholders that their views will be more transparently accepted and their influence on CAISO policy highlighted. "We will correct the problem of how to gauge influence" and note such changes in the grid operator's documents, Doughty said. CAISO staff noted, however, that there will be a "definitive time line" for stakeholder input. Mansour went on to say that if stakeholders want to pack up their tennis shoes and sweatshirts and spend all night working out a consensus on issues, that is fine with him. However, he added, if consensus is not reached by the grid operator's deadline, CAISO will proceed with its own recommendations. Last week, Mansour lamented that the grid operator spent 16 months getting input on a "process to create a process." Demand for electricity will grow by a projected 11,000 MW in the next decade. That, coupled with erosion of the current surplus, means that the agency needs to take action, Mansour said. Despite Mansour's pronouncement, stakeholders did not appear to give up their attempts to reach decisions based more on consensus. Silicon Valley Power director of risk management Chad Wozinak continued to insist stakeholders get their say because they pay the cost of CAISO decisions. Mansour also said he hopes to increase the grid operator's workplace efficiency and reduce the market settlement time. "In 2006, you will see a new ISO," he said. The transformation started last month with a 20 percent staff reduction (Circuit, July 1, 2005). Mansour said the grid operator was management-heavy and attributed redundancies to its being the first grid operator in the nation and charting out new territory. "It is a young organization in an old industry," he said. The CEO added that he hopes to cut the length of the settlement process from the current 3-4 months to 1 month with the launch of a new process next year. -J.A. Savage and Elizabeth McCarthy

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Grid Operator Says It Can’t Wait for Consensus

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