WECC
Melanie Frye is CEO of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council. Paul Kjellander is PUF Senior Advisor, former NARUC and Idaho Commission President.
The Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) is a non-profit corporation that exists to ensure a reliable bulk electric system in the Western Interconnection. WECC was approved by FERC as the regional entity for the Western Interconnection. NERC delegated some of its authority to create, monitor, and enforce reliability standards to WECC.
Of the six entities given authority by FERC and NERC, WECC’s footprint is the largest. It extends from Canada to Mexico and includes the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico, and all or portions of the 14 western states.
It is a big job to ensure a reliable bulk electric system in an area so sizeable and diverse. But that is what retiring WECC CEO Melanie Frye has been doing for almost twenty years. She spoke with PUF’s Paul Kjellander as she bid farewell.
PUF’s Paul Kjellander: What have been the biggest challenges during your nearly 20 years at WECC as you’ve tried to bring the region together to address reliability?