MISO staff are resolute that a collection of 24 proposed, mostly 765 kV projects totaling $21.8 billion is a “least-regrets” avenue to achieving members’ resource planning, despite misgivings from some members.

At their quarterly meetup, MISO members largely agreed there won’t be an easy path to achieving decarbonization affordably for customers.

MISO’s quarterly public meetup with its board of directors put on display the unrelenting rift between the RTO’s planners and the Independent Market Monitor over MISO’s $21 billion in long-range transmission planning.

MISO said its second, mostly 765-kV long-range transmission plan will provide the Midwest region with at least a 1.9:1 benefit-cost ratio, a metric that was greeted with skepticism by Independent Market Monitor David Patton.

After five fruitless attempts to agree on joint transmission projects across their seams, MISO and SPP will use what they call a “blended joint model” in parallel with existing SPP and MISO regional models.

Infocast’s inaugural Midcontinent Clean Energy summit provided panelists a pulpit for critiquing MISO’s interconnection queue setup as it strains under the weight of hundreds of gigawatts intended to further fleet shift and meet load growth.

A recent webinar from Texas-based analytics firm Aurora Energy Research drew attention to promising and troubling trends alike in MISO’s interconnection queue process.

DOE awarded $371 million to state regulatory agencies to accelerate transmission permitting and to communities impacted by major interstate projects.

MISO’s $25 billion, mostly 765-kV long-range transmission package for the Midwest region is nearing finalization, while the Independent Market Monitor continues to doubt the necessity of the projects.