No End in Sight: Can Transmission Investment in MISO Continue at this Pace? (white paper)
There are many factors driving transmission investment. Just when one factor seems to run its course, another reason for investing in transmission takes over. In MISO, the growth rate of transmission investing over the last year has slowed a bit, but the absolute levels of investment will remain high for at least the next several years as investor-owned utilities (“IOUs”) and transmission companies (“Transcos”) continue to see transmission investment as a major driver of earnings. Although transmission investment is broadening somewhat to more generation and transmission cooperatives (“G&Ts”) and municipal utilities, the message for public power and cooperatives in MISO remains clear: Investing in transmission is the most effective way to counter rising transmission rates.