ERCOT proposes annual statewide "batch" study to manage surge in interconnection requests; PUC to change transmission allocation
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Summary
Faced with an unprecedented generation and large‑load queue, ERCOT proposed a statewide annual batch study to allocate limited transmission capacity to realistic projects; PUC said it will move away from the 4‑coincident‑peak transmission cost method under SB6 and is developing rule language including financial‑security proposals that drew concern from consumer advocates.
Austin — ERCOT and the Public Utility Commission outlined a package of near‑term changes intended to manage an unusually large queue of generation and large‑load interconnection requests and to reduce the cost burden on retail customers.
ERCOT CEO Pablo Veil told the Senate committee that the operator is now managing more than 2,000 generation interconnection requests (about 450,000 MW) and roughly 410,000 MW of proposed large loads. He said project restudies and repeated updates have created what ERCOT calls a ‘‘doom loop’’ of continual retesting as multiple projects advance in parallel.
“To avoid repeated restudies and to allocate what the transmission system can support, ERCOT is proposing a statewide batch study,” Veil said. The initial “batch 0” would evaluate projects ready to energize or very near energization and allocate capacity pro‑rata where constrained, then run annual batches to add incremental capacity.
PUC Chairman Tom Gleeson said the commission is already drafting rules under Senate Bill 6: large‑load interconnection standards, net‑metering guardrails and a required evaluation of transmission cost allocation. Gleeson pledged to move away from the long‑standing 4‑coincident‑peak (4CP) method and examine alternatives (12‑CP, 365‑CP, energy‑consumption‑based approaches) before statutory deadlines.
The proposed interconnection rule also includes financial‑security proposals to limit speculative requests. Gleeson noted a draft ceiling of $50,000 per MW as a top-end cap and an example structure of 80% nonrefundable and 20% refundable in early drafts; he and ERCOT said graduated and milestone‑tied approaches are under consideration. Consumer advocates urged graduated scales, phased requirements and alignment with revised cost‑allocation so residential customers do not shoulder stranded costs.
What’s next: ERCOT expects to present the batch‑0 methodology to its board in June and the PUC in July, with batch 0 work starting in the autumn and an ongoing annual cadence to follow. The PUC said it will publish and vet rule drafts and invited committee and stakeholder engagement.
Quoted: “Because there's so many projects advancing at the same time, by the time a project gets ready to energize dozens of others have changed the topology of the grid. We need a batch study,” Veil said.
