4 Colo. Code Regs. § 723-3-3534
Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 11, June 10, 2024
Section 4 CCR 723-3-3534 - NWA Suitability Screening(a) Major distribution grid projects identified to be necessary in the grid needs assessment conducted pursuant to rule 3532 shall be subject to an NWA suitability screening to determine if a NWA may be a suitable alternative to traditional utility infrastructure solutions.(b) The NWA suitability screening is performed by the utility and includes the following criteria: (I) the project is anticipated to occur during the ten-year planning horizon;(II) the constraint is due to thermal loading, voltage, capacity or reliability issues and could be resolved by a DER, a reduction in peak demand loading, a reduction in energy consumption, or load shifting on the transmission or distribution facilities; and(III) the conventional solution is still within the planning or design stage, with no major equipment on order, received, or installed that cannot be repurposed for other uses.(c) The utility may seek a waiver from these requirements on a case-by-case basis, if necessary, to preserve reliability, serve economic development needs, or to meet other unforeseen circumstances where the utility expects a non-wires alternative cannot adequately resolve or the planning constraint. Such requests should be substantiated to show why the NWA suitability screening is not possible or could not reasonably result in an alternative to traditional utility infrastructure. Should the utility assert that a NWA is infeasible due to the urgency of the grid need, the utility shall also explain why the grid need was not previously identified.(d) For all major distribution grid projects identified as meeting all the NWA suitability screening, the utility shall conduct a technology-neutral competitive solicitation for NWAs to defer, reduce, or avoid the costs of the major distribution grid projects.38 CR 17, September 10, 2015, effective 9/30/201539 CR 06, March 25, 2016, effective 4/14/201639 CR 08, April 25, 2016, effective 5/15/201640 CR 22, November 25, 2017, effective 12/15/201742 CR 03, February 10, 2019, effective 3/2/201942 CR 07, April 10, 2019, effective 4/30/201942 CR 09, May 10, 2019, effective 5/30/201943 CR 08, April 25, 2020, effective 5/15/202043 CR 12, June 25, 2020, effective 7/15/202043 CR 20, October 25, 2020, effective 11/14/202044 CR 13, July 10, 2021, effective 7/30/202144 CR 24, December 25, 2021, effective 1/14/202245 CR 18, September 25, 2022, effective 10/15/202246 CR 02, January 25, 2023, effective 2/14/2023