SPP COVID-19 Response Update - March 26, 2020
Stakeholders –
SPP is quickly adapting to our new normal. Our non-operations staff has transitioned to working remotely, we are conducting all meetings virtually, and a team of leaders from across the organization now meets daily to assess and respond to circumstances that are still developing around us. We are also taking numerous proactive steps that will undoubtedly benefit us if the COVID-19 threat continues for several months. As noted in last week’s email, we continue to take precautions to ensure the health and safety of our operations staff. We appreciate your support and partnership as we all work together to navigate the uncertainties posed by this unprecedented event.
We hope your organizations are continuing to receive the degree of service you’ve come to expect from SPP despite the fact that more of our business is being conducted virtually and by a decentralized staff these days. We’re working hard to facilitate our stakeholder process, continue toward our strategic goals, and respond to your inquiries as always. If at any point through this transitionary period you feel there’s something you’re lacking from SPP, please contact your customer relations representative and let us know. Meanwhile, we’ll continue to provide updates via messages like this and maintain our commitment to help our members work together to keep the lights on, today and in the future.
A few items of note that may be of interest to you:
- All stakeholder meetings will continue to be conducted by web or teleconference until further notice. We’ll get word through our staff secretaries, emails like this one, and notices on SPP.org when we feel it’s prudent to transition back to in-person meetings based on guidance from the CDC and other health agencies.
- The SPP system remains reliable. We maintain sufficient capacity to meet load, and thus far demand across our region as a whole has remained predictable and consistent with this season in prior years.
- You’ve likely seen the advisory issued by FERC and NERC on March 18 providing guidance to registered entities amid growing impacts of the COVID-19 virus. For its part, SPP staff will continue to perform all processes, procedures and controls as normal. This means you, our stakeholders, should not expect our behaviors to change as a result of this advisory.
- Our regional planning processes, including generator interconnection and transmission service study processes, are proceeding as normal. Planning staff have completed our Integrated Transmission Planning (ITP) needs assessment and opened the detailed project proposal (DPP) window despite the challenges of our transition to remote work.
Thank you as always for the trust you place in SPP. None of us is as strong as all of us, and we greatly value your partnership as we work together to ensure the long-term reliability and affordability of electricity throughout our region.