| Abstract |
Over the past 2-3 years, western US utility and regional planners have begun to evaluate scenarios where geothermal resources could provide 5 – 10% of generation capacity in the region, resulting in significant economic benefits by providing a reliable source of clean power. However, these evaluations typically don’t detail where these potential geothermal resources are located, and what the associated transmission requirements may be. For most of the transmission planning in the western region of the US, including inter-state transmission projects in advanced development, geothermal energy is very much a secondary consideration, after wind and solar energy. To address these shortcomings, a western regional plan for transmission development to support a potentially significant geothermal expansion should aim to study two topics: One, the existing and advanced planned transmission network needs to be analyzed with respect to how it would facilitate geothermal development and contracting, with appropriate upgrades identified. Two, conceptual transmission planning is needed to identify additional transmission needs for high megawatt geothermal scenarios, starting with the current long-term processes conducted by California state agencies, particularly the California ISO long-term transmission plan, the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), and other western regional planning entities, and should ideally be reflected in the resulting utility transmission plans within the region. This paper will recommend a process by which policymakers, planners, and the geothermal industry can coordinate to develop a conceptual plan for the region that will tie together resource and transmission planning into 2045 to support high megawatt geothermal scenarios. |