For Immediate Release: January 27, 2006
Media Contact: Amy Morgan - 916-654-4989

Committee elected to guide renewable energy generation
in the Western United States

Sacramento-A seven-seat committee responsible for governing a renewable energy registry and tracking system in the Western United States confirmed its board members this month.

The Western Renewable Energy Generation Information System (WREGIS) a voluntary, independent accounting system for the region covered by the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), consists of 14 states, 2 Canadian provinces and the northern portion of Baja California, Mexico. A joint development between the California Energy Commission and the Western Governors' Association (WGA), WREGIS will act as a tool to assist states and Canadian provinces in verifying compliance with renewable energy policies and voluntary programs.

WREGIS committee members are:

• Generator Representative: Gregg Morris, Green Power Institute and Future Resources Association, Inc. (elected).
• Load-Serving Entity Representative: John Pappas, Pacific Gas & Electric (elected).
• "Other" Industry Representative: Lenny Hochschild, Evolution Markets, Inc. (elected).
• State/Provincial Representative: Laura Nelson, Utah Governor's Office (elected).
• Western Governors' Association: Anne-Marie Cuneo, Nevada Public Utilities Commission (appointed).
• California Energy Commission: Suzanne Korosec, California Energy Commission (appointed).
• WECC: Jack King, non-affiliated director (appointed).

The registration process, rules, and mechanics of the election were established by the interim WREGIS Committee. Members of the Stakeholder Advisory Committee, which consist of two participant classes (industry, state/provincial) elected four representatives to the WREGIS committee, while three members were appointed by their respective agencies.

The Western Governors' Association called for the development of a single, independent institution in the West to issue, track, and verify renewable energy generation and certificates as part of its Energy Policy Roadmap. At the same time California's Legislature directed the Energy Commission to develop a system to verify compliance with California's Renewables Portfolio Standard and to verify retail product claims of "green" power suppliers. Recognizing the benefits of collaboration, in July 2003, the Energy Commission and WGA agreed to jointly develop a single system to track and register renewable energy generation and certificates in the Western United States. Currently, the WREGIS project is in the implementation stage, with an emphasis on procuring software and developing the infrastructure of WREGIS.

As part of the procurement process, a request for proposals for the Software Development and Technical Operations Contractor of the WREGIS software was released on September 19, 2005. Final proposals are due February 21, 2006. WREGIS is expected to be operational in early 2007.


More information about WREGIS is available on the Energy Commission's website at:

http://www.energy.ca.gov/portfolio/wregis/index.html

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