Markets+ Ramping Up, Catalyst in SPP Growth
- SPP
- Feb 3
- 3 min read
SPP recently took part in a major economic development announcement by state of Arkansas, further demonstrating the value of SPP’s Markets+ initiative.
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) helped spread word of the $150 million project at SPP, due to the establishment of Markets+, an innovative energy market that will serve the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West and Desert Southwest regions of the U.S.
Markets+, backed by secured financing, anticipates a launch in October 2027. By the end of that year, SPP is projecting to create about 190 new engineering, IT, market administration, and support jobs, including about 165 in Little Rock, as part of its corporate growth and market expansion.
SPP CEO Lanny Nickell provided the lead quote in the news release by the AEDC.
“SPP is proud that our employee base, as well as the reach and value of our services are all growing as a result of our expansion into the western part of the country,” Nickell said. “We’re already well respected in the energy industry for our expertise in more affordably keeping the lights on across our region extending from Texas to North Dakota. Soon, consumers in a broader region throughout the West will also count on us to ensure dependable, affordable provision of wholesale energy.”
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders also praised the SPP expansion as a major coup for the state.
“Southwest Power Pool’s continued investment reflects the role Arkansas plays in supporting critical infrastructure, keeping communities powered and businesses moving,” Sanders said. “Their investment in Little Rock strengthens the operational backbone that makes this work possible and reinforces Arkansas’ place in the national energy landscape."
Leading state media covered the announcement, including the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas Business, KTHV-Channel 11, and Talk Business & Politics.
Carrie Simpson, SPP vice president for markets, recently spoke about the status of Markets+ on the People in Power podcast, hosted by NewsData.
She noted that along with Markets+, SPP is also expanding its footprint as a Regional Transmission Organization (RTO). Both represent expansions to areas in the West. RTO membership includes additional services, such as transmission planning. Importantly, the RTO expansion marks the first time that an RTO will provide such membership services in the Eastern Interconnection of the US grid as well as the Western Interconnection.
“I like to think of them [the two interconnections] as two different swimming pools next to each other where there is connectivity,” Simpson said. “Our RTO structure moves to parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, and all services the RTO provides will be available to those entities participating in those states. We’re clearing one market across both areas.”
Although currently operating in the East, SPP has an advantage in expanding to the West because it already serves, and understands the energy needs of, low-population density areas in the Great Plains, Simpson said.
Markets+ is being funded by $150 million in financing secured by SPP with collateral pledged by 11 participating entities. The loans for standing up Markets+ will be paid off through administrative costs levied by SPP through participants that transact in the market.
“We’re always looking to improve, and FERC [the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] may say we need to make changes to certain bells and whistles and that’s understandable,” she said. “It’s the same with all markets.”
Simpson is excited about the possibilities of integrating additional solar energy sources into SPP to support the diversity of the resource mix. There is plenty of wind in the West, which SPP already has experience in, but SPP currently has a low percentage of solar power in its footprint. She also expects the emerging and expanding technology of industrial level battery storage to play a significant role.
Increasingly, more leaders in the energy field are convinced that going it alone doesn’t work.
“This is an exciting time because more people believe in the value of regionalization,” she said. “There are great benefits to diversity in organized markets.”
Southwest Power Pool will be hiring for a range of positions. Applications for roles can be found at https://www.spp.org/careers
