DOE Grid Deployment Office Releases National Transmission Planning Study

On October 3, 2024, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO) released the National Transmission Planning (NTP) Study, a resource that provides tools and methods useful for long-term interregional transmission planning. The study provides a planning framework as states look for cost-effective solutions to address demand growth and aim to respond to FERC Order 1920 (click here for NASEO's FERC Order 1920 Publication). A key takeaway from the study is that additional interregional transmission can bring about consumer savings, reduced power outages, cleaner energy supply, and enhanced resilience for the country's electric system.

The NTP Study aims to address the gap in planning resources for interregional transmission projects, providing enhanced scenario planning, generation and transmission co-planning, and benefits evaluation support. More information on each component is provided below:

• Enhanced scenario planning:
  • The NTP Study provides various scenarios to account for demand growth, transmission technologies, carbon emissions targets, and other sensitivities.
• Transmission co-planning:
  • With long-term planning in mind, the NTP Study utilizes a capacity expansion model to identify optimized transmission and generation buildout. Additionally, the study addresses "High Opportunity Transmission" options to identify interregional transmission solutions.
• Benefits evaluation support:
  • The study links the scenarios developed from the capacity expansion model to downstream models involving resource adequacy, production cost, power flow, and extreme weather. By developing these evaluations from the national or multi-regional perspective, GDO aims to improve consistency in benefit calculations.

For more information on the NTP Study, click here.