Tom Kleckner

Tom has 28 years of experience in the electric industry. During his time with Central and South West before its merger with AEP, he earned his family of four free airfare to New York City by making bi-monthly round trips between Dallas and Columbus as a member of the merger management team. Tom also handled public relations during TXU’s contentious effort to build 11 coal plants in Texas — and lived to talk about it. After a short stint with ERCOT helping implement its nodal market, Tom spent four years at SPP, managing communications for the implementation of the RTO’s Integrated Marketplace. A former sportswriter, Tom holds a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. He lives in The Woodlands, about 35 miles north of Houston.

ERCOT Monitor Recommends New Market Design in Report

Grid Operator Unveils Additions to Notification System

May 31, 2023

Tom Kleckner

ERCOT's Independent Market Monitor’s annual market report recommends resurrecting a multi-interval, real-time design, among other things.

Carbon-capture Plant Coming Back into Service

Petra Nova Facility Mothballed Since 2020

May 30, 2023

Tom Kleckner

The Petra Nova carbon-capture facility’s owner has told ERCOT that it plans to bring the plant out of mothballs and into year-round service in June.

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NextEra Gets Final OK for Kansas-Missouri Tx Line

Kansas Regulators Grant NEET Southwest Siting Authority

May 30, 2023

Tom Kleckner

Kansas regulators have granted a siting permit for NextEra Energy Transmission's Wolf Creek-Blackberry project, clearing the way for construction to begin.

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ERCOT Technical Advisory Committee Briefs: May 23, 2023

May 29, 2023

Tom Kleckner

ERCOT staff report designating 19 firm fuel supply service resources after the Legislature passed safeguard bill.

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Texas PUC Rejects SWEPCO Application for Renewables at Pirkey

May 29, 2023

Tom Kleckner

Texas regulators rejected SWEPCO's application to build renewable generation resources at the site of a coal plant that ceased operations in March.

MISO, SPP Staffs Take Crack at Rate Pancaking

MISO’s Long-term Transmission Planning will Delay Staff Work on Measure

May 29, 2023

Tom Kleckner

SPP and MISO plan to draft a white paper on rate pancaking and unreserved use, two issues that bedevil utilities along the RTOs’ seam.

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FERC Sides with SPP Over Interconnection Study Complaint

Commission Also Ends OPPD Show-cause Order Proceeding

May 29, 2023

Tom Kleckner

FERC denied a solar farm developer’s tariff waiver request and a complaint against SPP over the RTO's interconnection studies for the planned facility.

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Uncertain Future for Texas’ Renewables Industry

Legislature Moving Bills to Boost Gas Generation, Hamper Clean Energy

May 25, 2023

Tom Kleckner

The Texas Legislature is working to pass bills to facilitate fossil fuel energy generation but limit renewable energy generation.

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SPP Briefs: Week of May 15, 2023

RTO Expects ‘Normal’ Operations This Summer

May 22, 2023

Tom Kleckner

SPP says it expects “normal” summer operations in its balancing authority and reliability coordinator areas this summer, despite a projected drought.

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Texas RE Board/MRC Briefs: May 17, 2023

May 18, 2023

Holden Mann and Tom Kleckner

The Texas Reliability Entity’s board voted to approve the organization’s 2024 business plan and budget, along with accepting its 2022 financial statements.

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