|
Bates White issues report on need for new high-voltage transmission line in Virginia
WASHINGTON DC, January 10, 2008—In a report prepared for the Virginia State Corporation Commission,
Bates White explored potential alternatives to the construction of a 500-kilovolt electric transmission
line proposed by Dominion Virginia Power (DVP) and Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line Company.
The authors of the report, Nicolás Puga, Bates White
Principal, and Spencer Yang, Ph.D., Bates White Manager,
concluded that in the absence of significant generation additions and/or load reduction, additional
transmission infrastructure is critical to ensure that the backbone transmission system can reliably serve
the expected load growth in the PJM mid-Atlantic region and the northern Virginia area.
Bates White performed load flow modeling, contingency analysis, and reliability needs assessments of
numerous scenarios that encompassed transmission, generation, and demand-response alternatives. Bates
White also submitted a report that analyzed the costs of the proposed line.
The comprehensiveness and objectivity of the report have been recognized by groups in conflict over the
necessity of the line. The Washington Post reported on January 10, 2007, that DVP (which applied for
approval to build the line) was “pleased with [Bates White’s] findings” and that
Piedmont Environmental Group (which has filed testimony opposed to the line) was “comfortable”
that the report was not a refutation of its case.
The proposed line would traverse sections of Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia and terminate at a
substation in Loudoun County, VA. The line is known as the
“502 Junction-Mt. Storm-Meadow Brook-Loudoun 500 kV Transmission Line” and
consists of 265 total miles, 93 of which would be in Virginia.
To read the Washington Post article, visit:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/09/AR2008010903259.html.
Nicolás Puga, M.S., has more than 20 years of
experience as a senior energy advisor and executive of energy consulting services in international
marketing, business development, and operations. Mr. Puga has worked as a technical advisor on energy
infrastructure project development, energy end-use efficiency, renewable energy technology policies and
marketing. Mr. Puga has advised numerous private and public sector clients in the United States, Canada,
Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, the Philippines, and Australia.
()
Spencer Yang, Ph.D., is an expert in transmission modeling,
computer simulation techniques, economic and statistical analysis, and quantitative and predictive
modeling. Dr. Yang provides attorneys and senior management with strategic advice and litigation support
in electric transmission business and regulatory market power disputes. Prior to joining Bates White, he
served as a Staff Scientist at California Institute of Technology and as a Senior Postdoctoral Scholar at
California Institute of Technology, where he synthesized abstract research results into meaningful
recommendations to government reviewers.
()
About Bates White
Bates White is a consulting firm offering services in economics, finance, and
business strategy to leading law firms, Fortune 500 companies, and government agencies. We provide our clients with a
unique combination of quantitative and analytical expertise, and an understanding of business issues across a range
of industries. Bates White has offices in Washington, D.C., and San Diego, Calif.
www.bateswhite.com
|
