WIND CATCHER UPDATE

Oklahoma’s Corporation Commission received an update Tuesday about ongoing discussions related to Public Service Co. of Oklahoma’s Wind Catcher case.

The utility seeks to collect construction costs from its ratepayers for what could be the largest wind project in the nation.

If built and brought online at the end of 2020, the 2,000-megawatt Wind Catcher Connection in Oklahoma’s Panhandle would supply the customers of PSO and Southwestern Electric Power with electricity the utilities maintain would be among the most affordable in the nation.

PSO would own 30 percent of the project, while its sister utility, Southwestern Electric Power, would own the remainder.

The utilities, both of which are subsidiaries of American Electric Power, also propose building a 360-mile line capable of carrying 600 megawatts of power from the wind farm to the Tulsa metropolitan area, where it would be input into the part of the Southwest Power Pool grid that PSO and Southwestern Electric operate and maintain.

In total, the project’s expected cost is $4.5 billion, and PSO seeks authorization to recover $1.36 billion from its customers.

On Tuesday, commissioners learned talks were ongoing, with another round planned for one day next week.

“There was a commitment from the company to look at issues raised by the parties,” said Brandy Wreath, director of the commission’s public utility division, “so there is an ongoing look happening from that standpoint.”