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SPP and Member Utilities Successfully Achieve Western Expansion Milestone

LCG, April 2, 2026--Southwest Power Pool (SPP) today announced that the expansion of its service territory into the Western Interconnection has been a success. The milestone makes SPP the first regional transmission organization (RTO) with services spanning the Eastern and Western Interconnections. Its member organizations, which cover all or part of 17 states, can now benefit from a more operationally and geographically diverse integrated system.

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Holtec Achieves Milestone towards Restarting Palisades Nuclear Facility and Advances Plans to Build Two SMRs at Palisades Site

LCG, March 31, 2026--Holtec International yesterday announced that it successfully completed a milestone test necessary to return Holtec's Palisades Nuclear Generating Station to service. The 805-MW pressurized water reactor (PWR) is located in Michigan and was shut down by Entergy in May 2022. Holtec acquired the facility in June 2022 and has pursued a path to return the plant to service.

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Industry News

California PUC Issues Mixed Decision on SDG&E Power Purchase Agreements

LCG, March 22, 2013--The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) yesterday approved a request from San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) to enter a 25-year agreement with the Escondido Energy Center, a 45-MW repowering project. The CPUC approved the contract based on the project?s relative low cost, small size increase, high viability, and environmental benefits resulting from a repower.

The CPUC did not approve SDG&E's request to enter power purchase agreements with the Pio Pico Energy Center and Quail Brush Power. The CPUC stated the agreements were denied, in part, because the agreements were scheduled to come online in 2014, but the evidence demonstrated that there is no need for incremental local capacity until 2018, four years into the 20 year terms of the contracts.

Yesterday's decision was made as part of the CPUC's Long-Term Procurement Planning process, which established the need for additional energy supplies for the San Diego area beginning in 2018.

Commissioner Mark J. Ferron, stated, "My goal is simple: to ensure that SDG&E can best meet the future needs of its customers while avoiding a situation where ratepayers pay needlessly for new generation."

"The evidence supporting the need for Pio Pico and Quail Brush is inconclusive, and SDG&E's customers should not be made to pay until it is conclusive," stated Commissioner Mike Florio.

The question of need for new generation is complicated given the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), a significant generating resource in Southern California, has been unavailable for a year due to concerns with cracks in steam generator tubes. The timetable to restart SONGS is unclear. SONGS is jointly owned by San Diego Gas & Electric (20 percent), Southern California Edison (78.21 percent), and the City of Riverside (1.79 percent).

A SDG&E spokesperson state, "The uncertainty surrounding the operation of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating facility suggests that an earlier start date of these facilities would provide added power supply insurance for the region."
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