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March 18, 2026

CAISO/WEIM

The California Independent System Operator serves about 80% of California's electricity demand, including the service areas of the state's three investor-owned utilities. It also operates the Western Energy Imbalance Market, an interstate real-time market covering territory that accounts for 80% of the load in the Western Interconnection.
Brattle Group
Budget Cuts Threaten Calif. VPP Program
Clean energy advocates are urging California lawmakers to restore funding to a fast-growing distributed energy program that has shown its ability to support the grid during a test run. 
NorthWestern Energy
Black Hills-NorthWestern Merger Could Reshape Western Market Map

The proposed merger between Black Hills Corp. and NorthWestern Energy likely will reshape the map in the competition between CAISO’s Extended Day-Ahead Market and SPP’s Markets+ — but it’s still too early to know where new boundaries will be drawn.

© RTO Insider 
State Tx Entity, Regional Markets Feature in Ore. Energy Strategy
The Oregon Department of Energy’s new draft energy strategy points to the importance of new transmission development and expanding electricity markets for meeting the state's energy goals.
BLM California
CAISO Monitor Sees ‘Gaming’ Potential in Battery Storage Bid Cost Recovery

CAISO’s Market Monitor is concerned about potential gaming practices and inefficient bidding behavior in the ISO’s bid cost recovery  process for battery storage resources.

DOE
BPA Supported by Trade Orgs in Suit over Day-ahead Market Decision
Trade organizations for utilities and large energy consumers seek to intervene in the lawsuit filed in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals challenging the Bonneville Power Administration’s decision to join SPP’s Markets+ instead of CAISO’s EDAM.
CAISO
Calif. Energy Officials Ponder Interconnection Timelines, Load Uncertainty
California energy officials are recognizing the need to work together to prioritize a long list of transmission and distribution interconnection projects as the state’s load growth accelerates due to expected data center development.
Shutterstock
BPA’s Proposed Tx Access Changes Prompt Questions of Industry Readiness
BPA’s proposed changes to its grid access process have prompted questions about how new readiness criteria will affect established industry practices and financing of new projects.
Brattle Group
Home Batteries Provide 535 MW to CAISO Grid on VPP Test Day
An aggregation of more than 100,000 residential batteries provided an average 535 MW of support to California’s electricity grid during a test to prepare for the hot summer period ahead.
Google
PG&E Data Center Proposals Nearly Double in 2025 to 10 GW

Data center applications are piling up in Pacific Gas and Electric’s territory, with some of the new load projected to come online in 2027.

CAISO
WEIM Q2 Benefits Exceed $420M, as Total Tops $7.4B
CAISO’s Western Energy Imbalance Market provided participants with $422.44 million in economic benefits during the second quarter of 2025, up 15% compared with the same period year earlier despite no change in membership. 

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