THE EVENT DATE HAS PASSED. TO FIND INFORMATION FOR THE CURRENT YEAR, PLEASE VISIT THE TRAINING AND EVENT CATALOG OR CALL US AT (360) 254-0109.

Who Should Attend:

Power supply professionals; general managers and CEOs; policy makers; finance and rate department managers; and government and public affairs professionals.

Conference Overview:

The 2016 NWPPA Power Supply Conference is designed by electric utility power supply professionals to update you on current issues and topics that are important to the West. Managing and planning for power resources and costs have never been more challenging given the prospect that your utility's retail rates could exceed the cost of other providers in the near future. At this workshop we will cover the challenges and opportunities of serving customers with offerings and prices that meet their expectations. 

Conference Agenda:

Monday, August 1, 2016

1–1:10 p.m.      Welcome by Bear Prairie, Assistant General Manager, Idaho Falls Power (Idaho Falls, Idaho)

1:10–2:40 p.m. Keynote panel: The Changing Western Power Supply Landscape

Panelists: Anita Decker, Executive Director, NWPPA (Vancouver, Wash.); Todd O'Keefe, Member Service Manager – Pacific Northwest, The Energy Authority (Bellevue, Wash.); Dian Grueneich, Senior Research Scholar, Stanford University (Stanford, Calif.); and Roger Gray, Chief Executive Officer, NRU (Portland, Ore.)

Moderator: Todd O'Keefe, Member Service Manager – Pacific Northwest, The Energy Authority (Bellevue, Wash.)

Given new distributed generation, customer demand for renewable choices, changing regulations, and a challenging economy, working in the area of power supply has never been more challenging. Listen in on our blue-ribbon panel of speakers regarding the changing power supply landscape of the West.

2:40–2:55 p.m. Break

2:55–3:55 p.m. Status of Federal & State Regulation and Legislation

Speakers: Will Hart, Executive Director, Idaho Consumer-Owned Utilities Association (Boise, Idaho); Danelle Romain, Attorney/Lobbist, The Romain Group; Elizabeth Hadley, Electric Program Supervisor, Redding Electric Utility (Redding, Calif.); Russ Schneider, Regulatory Analyst, Flathead Electric Cooperative (Kalispell, Mont.); George Caan, Executive Director, Washington PUD Association; (Olympia, Wash.); and Jessica Matlock, Director of Public Affairs, Snohomish County PUD, (Everett, Wash.)

Federal and Western states' legislation and regulations on the power supply generated and used within their borders are changing to reflect customer and societal expectations and desires for a clean environment and customer choice. We will listen in as federal and state panelists discuss their state’s changing legislative and regulatory landscapes, and how it is, or may be, impacting your resource plan.

3:55–4:55 p.m. Status of the EIM

                          Speaker: Don Fuller, Director Strategic Alliances, California ISO (Folsom, Calif).

                          To be announced

5–6 p.m.            Networking reception

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

7:00–8:00 a.m.   Continental breakfast

8:10–9:10 a.m.   IRP panel

Panelists: Franco Albi, Manager of IRP, Portland General Electric (Portland, Ore.); and Todd White, Senior Manager, Energy Portfolio, Roseville Electric Utility (Roseville, Calif.) Cam LeHouillier, Manager of Long Term Planning, Tacoma Power, (Tacoma, Wash.)

What are our utilities thinking about from a load and resource perspective over the next 10 years? What variables and new trends do we foresee coming, and what steps are we taking from a planning perspective to be ready?

9:10–10:10 a.m. Finance panel

Panelists: Bradford Walker, Director, Public Finance, Bank of America Merrill Lynch  (San Francisco, Calif.); Ed Meyers, Managing Director, Piper Jaffray (New York, N.Y.); Isaac Sine, JP Morgan (Seattle, Wash.); and Karl Pfeil, Senior Vice President, Wells Fargo, (New York, N. Y.)

Panelists of various financial institutions that lend within the energy sector will give an overview of what they see on the horizon: from liquidity in bond markets, investments they are seeing currently in the energy sector, and future investments. They will provide an overview of what their institutions see as concerns or hurdles in the energy sector, and how these might affect your utility’s credit rating.

10:25–11:10 a.m. How credit rating agencies rate your utility

Speaker: Karl Pfeil, Senior Vice President, Wells Fargo, (New York, N.Y.)

Pfeil will give an insider’s view as the former manager of Fitch Ratings for public power entities.

11:10 a.m.–Noon WAPA - SPP Experience

Speaker: Jody Sundsted, VP of Power Marketing, Western Area Power Administration – (UGPR), (Billings, Mont.)

Western-UGP went through an extensive public process for considering market participation options culminating in a comprehensive Alternative Operations Study which recommended SPP as having the most benefit and least risk. The Upper Great Plains Region was approved to join Southwest Power Pool with full participation commencing in October 2015. Mr. Sundsted will talk about their SPP experience to-date and regional market issues as they have developed in Western's marketing area.

Noon–1 p.m.   Lunch

1–1:50 p.m.     Impacts of EIM on Energy Prices and Transmission Markets

Speaker: Scott Harvey, Consultant, FTI Consulting, Member CAISO Market Surveillance Committee (Boston, Mass.)

How will the CAISO and EIM expansion affect power trading across the West and access to spot markets? What impacts will this have on energy prices in the region along with the traditional short-term market liquidity?

1:50–2:20 p.m. Demand Response: A Necessary Resource of the Future

Speaker: Eric Bakken, Business Development Manager, EnerNOC, Inc. (Portland, Ore.)

Demand response is becoming increasingly important as utilities look for ways to avoid procuring generation and building transmission infrastructure to meet peak demand. It may also be an environmentally friendly resource because peaking generators are usually carbon intensive. Your state may be looking to demand response as a way to limit its carbon footprint. What value might a demand response program bring to your utility or customers?

2:20–2:35 p.m. Break

2:35–3:25 p.m. Renewable Energy Systems                        

Speakers: Raheleh Folkerts, Director, Marketing and Communications, Renewable Energy Systems (Broomfield, Colo.); and John Fernandes, Director, Policy and Market Development, Renewable Energy Systems, (Broomfield, Colo.);

To be announced

3:25–3:55 p.m. Flow Battery Technology

                       Speaker: Ian Graham, Senior Applications Engineer, ViZn Energy (Columbia Falls, Mont.)

To be announced

3:55–4:05 p.m. Break

4:05–4:35 p.m. What Have We Learned from 50 Years of Overestimating Load Future Load Growth?

Speaker: Anne Falcon, Managing Director, EES Consulting (Kirkland, Wash.)

Where are we headed over the next 10, 20, and even 40 years from a demand perspective? Is the new norm none to very limited load growth in our service territories? Where is the demand going?

4:35–4:50 p.m. Wrap–up

                         Bear Prairie, Assistant General Manager, Idaho Falls Power (Idaho Falls, Idaho)

Conference Schedule:

Registration will begin at noon on day one; the conference will run from 12:50 to 4:30 on day one, and from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on day two. A welcome reception will take place from 5 to 6 p.m. on day one; a continental breakfast and a lunch will both be provided on day two.

Conference Location & Hotel Information:

Conference Fees: