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From Letter: 

1. Background on First Two Cycles of DSP/NWA Process Since initiating the DSP/NWA Process in 2020, Pepco has identified two system constraints appropriate for the process. During the inaugural cycle, which occurred in 2020 and 2021, Pepco evaluated solutions appropriate to resolve a constraint at the Waterfront Substation. This inaugural DSP/NWA Process cycle did not conclude with the use of a Locational Constraint Solution as the proposals submitted were not cost-beneficial compared to the Utility Proposed Solution. 

For the second DSP/NWA cycle, in 2022, the Company identified a constraint in Ward 8. Pepco initiated this second cycle of the DSP/NWA Process by engaging stakeholders in workshops and surveys to identify opportunities for process improvements. As standard practice, the Company issued the Load Impacting Factors Survey on October 26, 2022, and shared the results of the Locational Constraints Report during the third DSP/NWA stakeholder workshop on October 26, 2022. As discussed below, the Company concluded the second DSP/NWA Process cycle with a final stakeholder workshop on May 24, 2023. On October 23, 2023, Pepco filed a letter with the Commission and in that letter, Pepco explained that, in 2023, the Company updated its load forecast as part of its standard planning process. Through this process, the Company’s load forecast for the identified constraint was reduced from 170 MVA to 141.8 MVA. Thus, the standard planning process successfully realigned the forecast with changes in growth, and neither a traditional utility solution nor a third-party solution is required. Having removed the identified constraint that would have required additional investment in the system, Pepco halted its efforts to release a request for proposal (“RFP”) for the second cycle of the DSP/NWA Process. 

1. Annual Updates to the Load Forecast Mitigated the System Constraint Identified Following the second cycle of the DSP/NWA Process, Pepco continues to assess the overall DSP/NWA Process for refinements that can be implemented. In doing so, Pepco will continue to strive for the transparency that has defined this process since it was first negotiated in the PowerPath DC Non-Wires Alternative Working Group and has defined the first two cycles of the DSP/NWA Process. Based on the most recent load forecast published in Pepco’s 2024 Annual Consolidated Report, Pepco is currently not forecasting a constraint over the next 3 years that meets the criteria to be included in the DSP/NWA Process. The Company will continue to utilize its standard planning process to update its load forecast and identify constraints that are appropriate for the DSP/NWA Process. Beyond the DSP/NWA Process, Pepco continues to pursue a variety of use cases for DER solutions that will enhance the customer experience, bolster system reliability and/or resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Non-wires solutions are one use case, and Pepco will continue to look for cost-beneficial opportunities to incorporate them into the system.

Pepco Letter (04/17/2024)
FC1130 (06/12/2015)
(In the Matter of the Investigation into Modernizing the Energy Delivery System for Increased Sustainability)