PacifiCorp 2007 Integrated Resource Plan (May 30, 2007)

PacifiCorp – 2007 IRPChapter 2 – IRP Components, Planning Principles,Objectives, and Approach2007 INTEGRATED RESOURCE PLAN COMPONENTSThe basic components of PacifiCorp’s 2007 IRP, and where they are addressed in this report, areoutlined below.● The set of IRP principles and objectives that the company adopted for this IRP effort, as wellas a discussion on customer/investor risk allocation (this chapter)● An assessment of the planning environment, including market trends and fundamentals, legislativeand regulatory developments, and current procurement activities (Chapter 3)● A resource needs assessment covering the company’s load forecast, status of existing resources,resource expansion alternatives, and determination of the load and energy positionsfor the 10-year resource acquisition period (Chapter 4)● Profiles and background information for the resource options considered for addressing futurecapacity deficits (Chapter 5)● A description of the IRP modeling and risk analysis approach (Chapter 6)● A summary of modeling results and PacifiCorp’s preferred portfolio (Chapter 7)● An action plan linking the company’s preferred portfolio with specific implementation actions(Chapter 8)The IRP appendices, included as a separate volume, comprise base modeling assumptions, supportingtechnical information, detailed Capacity Expansion Module (CEM) modeling results,supplementary portfolio information, studies intended to meet certain state commission IRP acknowledgementrequirements, and status reports on IRP regulatory compliance and action planprogress. PacifiCorp’s response to written comments on the draft IRP report is incorporated inAppendix F.THE ROLE OF PACIFICORP’S INTEGRATED RESOURCE PLANNINGPacifiCorp’s IRP mandate is to assure, on a long-term basis, an adequate and reliable electricitysupply at a reasonable cost and in a manner “consistent with the long-run public interest.” 1 Themain role of the IRP is to serve as a roadmap for determining and implementing the company’slong-term resource strategy according to this IRP mandate. In doing so, it accounts for statecommission IRP requirements, the current view of the planning environment, corporate businessgoals, risk, and uncertainty. As a business planning tool, it supports informed decision-makingon resource procurement by providing an analytical framework for assessing resource investment1 The Oregon and Utah Commissions cite “long run public interest” as part of their definition of integrated resourceplanning. Public interest pertains to adequately quantifying and capturing for resource evaluation any resource costsexternal to the utility and its ratepayers. For example, the Utah Commission cites the risk of future internalization ofenvironmental costs as a public interest issue that should be factored into the resource portfolio decisionmakingprocess.12