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WEC warns of unprecedented load growth and retiring thermal capacity
Summary
Western Electricity Coordinating Council told UTC attendees that recent forecasts show large upward revisions and that retirements of traditional generators mean the region will need historic rates of new capacity buildout to meet decade‑ahead demand.
Victoria Ravenscroft of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council summarized the West‑wide assessment showing sustained load growth and record peaks: three of the last five years broke demand records and recent submissions show much higher future loads.
Ravenscroft said the interconnection’s planned nameplate additions outpace retirements by megawatts, but retiring thermal, coal and some gas units and the uncertain fate of Diablo Canyon mean nameplate additions do not directly translate to equivalent dependable capacity. "We are seeing a doubling of the forecast load," she said, and added that meeting that growth would require building at a rate the region has not seen before.
Commissioners asked about the 2019 dip and what is driving the spike; WEC pointed to weather variability for historical dips and to large industrial/ electrification and new large loads as drivers of the recent increases, and said the organization will use sensitivity scenarios to address concerns about double counting in interconnection requests.
