Memphis nears crucial decision on ties to TVA
The public should know if Memphis, and Memphis Light, Gas and Water is planning to stay with the Tennessee Valley Authority by Aug. 19.
That’s the day MLGW leadership plans on making its recommendation to the utility’s board about whether it wants to issue a bid to the private sector on its power supply. If it opts not to go out for bids on its power supply, that could mean that MLGW is closing the door on leaving TVA.
“The (integrated resource plan) findings will be presented to MLGW Board of Commissioners on Wednesday, Aug. 19. No date has been set to present to the City Council. The decision to move forward with (a request for proposals) will be covered in the presentation on Aug. 19,” MLGW said in a statement to The Commercial Appeal on Friday.
A request for proposals, or bidding process, opens the door to a new power supply for Memphis. But, even after such a bid is issued and returned, Memphis could still decide to stay with TVA.
For MLGW to ask the private sector to bid on its power supply, it would have to be approved by the MLGW board, then approved by the Memphis City Council. MLGW CEO J.T. Young has throughout MLGW’S evaluation of its future power supply said it is likely MLGW will go out for bids.
The utility’s leadership disclosing a harder timeline for the next steps in its search for power comes after one potential MLGW suitor, MISO, the Midcontinent System Operator, released its detailed analysis of what MLGW hooking
up to it would look like.
For months, various private advocates have proposed the utility build some new transmission lines and hook up to MISO, a power network and marketplace that stretches across central North America.
In such a scenario, MLGW would build no electricity generation of its own. It would just rely on the power coming over transmission lines. MISO, however, would not suggest MLGW do that if it wants to be in compliance with federal guidelines.
In its own study of Memphis joining the marketplace, MISO described such a scenario as too risky of an undertaking.
“This analysis identified significant thermal, voltage, and stability issues that indicate that this would not be a reliable solution for MLGW. It is believed that many of these issues could be solved by siting some local generation in or around the MLGW service territory,” MISO said in a report to MLGW.
MISO analyzed other scenarios, which include Memphis disconnecting from TVA and connecting to Entergy Mississippi and Arkansas, two pieces of the for-profit utility, Entergy, which is also a member of MISO.
Entergy has already expressed interest in such a connection, with two of its regional CEOS writing to Young, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and others that they believe a partnership between MLGW and the power supplier to its south and west makes sense for both parties.
Significant portions of MISO’S analysis of how Memphis would connect to it are redacted. On each page, the report says, “Certain sections of this report are redacted in compliance with federal regulations.”
Those redactions appear to include specific scenarios that involve infrastructure failure — what would happen if a certain piece of equipment failed and how power current would be rerouted through a system. The redactions make it difficult to see all of what MISO analyzed.
Samuel Hardiman covers Memphis city government and politics for The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached by email at samuel.hardiman@commercialappeal.com.