CARMEL, Ind., Nov. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --For the first time since it began integrating wind into market operations in 2006, actual wind output surpassed 10,000 megawatts in MISO, the regional grid operator for 11 states and the Canadian province of Manitoba.
The new wind peak took place overnight Friday, Nov. 23 with a peak output of 10,012 megawatts serving the energy needs of the MISO service territory and representing more than 25 percent of the generation output being used at that time.
"Wind represents one of the fuel choices that helps us manage congestion on the system and ultimately helps keep prices low for our customers and the end-use consumer," said Joe Gardner, Executive Director of Real-time Operations. "When we have significant quantities of wind being generated, we use less of other, more expensive, generation types to keep the system in balance," he said.
Total wind capacity in the MISO footprint has grown dramatically since 2006. Driven by the nation's desire for cleaner energy and state mandates for renewable energy portfolios, MISO now manages more than 11,000 MW of installed wind generation in service, with more than 7,000 MWs of projects advancing through the interconnection requirements.
For more information, see our Growth of Wind Capacity chart and MISO's Corporate Fact Sheet, both available on MISO's website: https://www.misoenergy.org
About MISO
MISO ensures reliable operation of, and equal access to high-voltage power lines in 11 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Manitoba. MISO manages one of the world's largest energy markets, with more than $23.6 billion in annual gross market energy transactions. MISO was approved as the nation's first regional transmission organization in 2001. The not-for-profit 501(C)(4) organization is governed by an independent Board of Directors and is headquartered in Carmel, Ind., with operations centers in Carmel and St. Paul, Minn. Membership is voluntary.
SOURCE MISO
