Portland General Electric formalizes Agreement to Join Western EIM

Portland General Electric Company (PGE) and the California Independent System Operator (ISO) filed an implementation agreement with FERC, paving the way for the Portland, Ore.-based utility to participate in the western energy imbalance market (EIM) starting in October 2017. The western EIM is a real-time energy wholesale market that automatically dispatches the lowest-cost electricity resources available to meet utility customer needs while optimizing use of renewable energy over a large geographic area. PGE is the most recent utility to announce participation in the western EIM. Arizona Public Service and Puget Sound Energy are set to enter the market in 2016. NV Energy began participating on December 1, 2015.