XI. Transmission Assessment Process

The purpose of R. 04-01-026, issued January 24, 2004, is to streamline the transmission planning process for the IOUs by eliminating the duplicative transmission need assessments that currently exist at the CAISO and the Commission. A component of this streamlining remaining from the original more narrow scope of this rulemaking, which was to amend the Commission's General Order 131-D, is the Commission's proposed deference to CAISO need determinations in its grid planning processes.

The CAISO asserts that the issue is whether the LTPPs were adequate to allow the Commission to accomplish the objectives outlined by the Commission in R.04-01-026. In this context the CAISO observes that the utilities' LTPPs are insufficient, and that additional information must be obtained from the IOUs in future submissions, in order to allow the Commission and CAISO to accurately assess transmission requirements. The CAISO recommends that the utilities should include conceptual scenarios for planned resource additions and assessments of associated transmission requirements. The CAISO adds that integrating the CAISO Transmission Expansion Planning Process (TEP) with the LTPP process is a key element of this proceeding.

The Commission agrees that the LTPPs did not include sufficient information to enable the CAISO to accurately assess transmission requirements. We agree that integrating the CAISO grid planning processes with the Commission's LTPP process is a worthwhile goal. In that regard we observe that on October 15, 2004, the Assigned Commissioner in R.04-01-026 issued a ruling stating "To achieve a comprehensive resource planning framework, the Commission must streamline the transmission planning process and integrate that with the biennial procurement process."

Thus, we note that it is the Commission's intention to more fully explore this issue in R.04-01-026.