Superior market design, governance and long-range economics lead BPA to select Markets+ in day-ahead market draft policy

The Bonneville Power Administration has issued its day-ahead market draft policy direction that concludes BPA should participate in a day-ahead market and pursue participation in Southwest Power Pool’s Markets+. This draft policy is the culmination of an extensive stakeholder process that analyzed the day-ahead market offerings of SPP and the California Independent System Operator.

“As the region evolves, this draft policy reflects BPA’s best opportunity to remain competitively positioned in the long-term to continue meeting firm power sales obligations and marketing surplus to maintain low rates for customers,” said Rachel Dibble, BPA Power Services vice president of Bulk Marketing.

The draft policy concludes that joining a day-ahead market is in the best interests of BPA’s customers. FERC’s approval of the Markets+ and Extended Day Ahead Market tariffs laid the groundwork for day-ahead markets to be the primary platforms for wholesale electricity transactions in the West. BPA’s draft policy outlines how participation will provide continued access to trading partners via a liquid market, market optimization, reliability of generation supply benefits and broader access to a larger portfolio of resources.

BPA has determined that Markets+ is the best day-ahead market option because of its superior market design, governance structure, and stakeholder process. BPA favors the market design of Markets+ because of its common resource adequacy standard, treatment of firm power participation, congestion rents, and BPA customer obligations for greenhouse gas accounting. BPA believes the Markets+ independent governance model is superior to EDAM as it ensures that no entity has disproportionate influence over market rules or operations. BPA’s paper describes how the Markets+ stakeholder process led to a robust tariff broadly supported by potential market participants.

BPA will review public comments following a 30-day formal comment period and expects to issue a final record of decision in May 2025. The day-ahead market draft policy paper is available at https://www.bpa.gov/learn-and-participate/projects/day-ahead-market.