Robust and reliable transmission and distribution networks are essential to achieving the

Administration's clean energy goals, including the development, integration, and delivery of new

renewable and other low-carbon resources in the electricity sector, and the use of these resources to

displace petroleum-based fuels in the transportation sector.

Pursuant to Title IV of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (2009), the Department of

Energy’s (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability is helping to strengthen the

capabilities for long-term analysis and planning in the three interconnections serving the lower 48

United States. The analytic teams – bolstered by technical support from the DOE’s National

Laboratories and leading universities – are identifying transmission requirements under a broad

range of alternative electricity futures (including intensive application of demand-side technologies),

and develop long-term interconnection-wide transmission expansion plans. Under the Recovery Act’s

Electricity

Advisory

Committee

Technology

Development

Electricity

Policy

Coordination

and

Implementation

Transmission

Planning

Congestion

Studies

National

Electric

Transmission

Congestion

Study

Recovery

Act

Interconnection

Transmission

Planning

Coordination

of Federal

Transmission

Permitting

on Federal

Lands

Improving

Performance

of Federal

Permitting

and Review

of

Infrastructure

Projects

Section

1222 of the

Energy

Policy Act

2005

International

Electricity

Home » Services » Electricity Policy Coordination and Implementation » Transmission Planning » Recovery Act Interconnection

Transmission Planning

View a Map of the Interconnections

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Funding Opportunity Announcement (DE-FOA0000068), DOE issued awards to five organizations

that will perform this work in the Western, Eastern and Texas Interconnections.

In each interconnection, the awardees are establishing an open, transparent, and collaborative

process involving participants from industry, federal and state governments, and non-governmental

organizations. In each interconnection, a diversified steering committee – including at least 1/3

representation from the states – is developing consensus scenarios for future electricity supplies and

analyzing environmental and other considerations that will be incorporated into transmission plans.

DOE is participating actively in these analytic and planning activities. Other federal agencies and

departments, such as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Environmental Protection

Agency, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Agriculture, are interested in this

initiative and will participate as they think appropriate.

As a result of these planning efforts, each of the awardees is producing long-term resource and

transmission planning studies in 2011, with updated documents in 2013. The knowledge and

perspective gained from this work will inform policy and regulatory decisions in the years to come

and provide critical information to electricity industry planners, states and others to develop a

modernized, low-carbon electricity system.

These awards are divided into two topic areas – funding for transmission planners and funding for

state agencies. Awards under the first topic area funds transmission planners’ work with stakeholder

organizations within an interconnection to project options for alternative electricity supplies and the

associated transmission requirements. The second group of awards goes to state agencies or

groups of agencies developing coordinated interconnection priorities and planning processes.

View the project website of each grantee at:

Eastern Interconnection States' Planning Council (EISPC)

Eastern Interconnection Planning Collaborative (EIPC)

Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) Long Term Study

Western Governors Association Regional Transmission Expansion Project (also see the

State/Provincial Steering Committee webpage)

Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) Regional Transmission Expansion

Project (also see the Scenario Planning Steering Committee webpage)

If you have any additional questions, please contact the Department (see contact information below).

Original Transmission Interconnection Planning Announcement and Amendments 

Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Department of Energy and the Federal

Energy Regulatory Commission

An essential component of the Interconnection-Wide Transmission Planning Initiative is funding for

DOE’s national laboratories on key topics that will support the five awardees’ interconnection-wide

transmission planning work. On April 1, 2010, DOE released a Funding Opportunity

Announcement to receive competitive bids from the national labs with a due date of May 3, 2010. 

Regulation

Other

Regulatory

Efforts

Electricity

Policy

Technical

Assistance

Program

August 2003

Blackout

DOE Grid Tech

Team

Energy

Assurance

Cybersecurity

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List of selected organizations

More About "Topic A" and "Topic B" Awards

More About the Interconnections

Interconnection Meeting Calendars

New Reports & Other Materials

Quick Links to Featured Reports

David Meyer

Program Manager,

Interconnection-wide

Planning Initiative

(202) 586-1411

David.Meyer@hq.doe.gov

Eastern Interconnection Liaison

David Meyer (above)

Western Interconnection Liaison

Larry Mansueti

U.S. Department of Energy

(202) 586-1411

Lawrence.Mansueti@hq.doe.gov

Texas Interconnection Liaison

Sandia National Laboratories - Energy and Water in the Western and Texas Interconnects

This project undertakes a comprehensive, regional analysis of the energy-water nexus to inform

policy-making at local, state and federal levels. Specifically, the resulting information supplements

the interconnection-wide transmission planning efforts with information on water availability, which is

critical when considering electric system planning options.

September 22, 2011

Western Electricity Coordinating Council releases its first-ever transmission plan for the

Western Interconnection. 

June 10, 2011

The Eastern Interconnection Planning Collaborative (EIPC) announced that its stakeholders

have agreed on the final set of “resource expansion futures” to be studied as part of the electric

system transmission planning effort funded by DOE. 

December 18, 2009

Secretary Chu Announces Efforts to Strengthen U.S. Electric Transmission Networks 

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Matt Rosenbaum

U.S. Department of Energy

(202) 586-1411

Matthew.Rosenbaum@hq.doe.gov

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