COLUMBUS - Two different companies monitor electric transmission lines in Ohio and Gov. Bob Taft wants to know if that's the best approach for the state.
If it is found that the division between the two regional transmission organizations poses risks, Taft wants the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to make recommendations for putting Ohio under a single organization.
"Ohio stands at a crossroads in the transmission of power across the nation, and our energy highway is a critical piece of our infrastructure," Taft said in a letter to PUCO Chairman Alan Schriber. "We need an efficient marketplace that our individual and business customers can rely upon."
The Indianapolis-based Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator and PJM Interconnection of Valley Forge, Pa., oversee transmission lines in Ohio.
Taft also appointed Schriber to a joint U.S.-Canadian task force investigating the Aug. 14 blackout that darkened homes and businesses in eight states and parts of Canada. The blackout affected 50 million people, shut down more than 100 power plants and knocked Cleveland's water supply off line.
U.S. and Canadian investigators are focusing on failures of a power plant and lines owned by Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp., including one transmission line that sagged into a tree.
RTOs are generally private, nonprofit companies that manage the balance of electricity flowing over an electric grid.
In his letter, Taft said questions have been raised about the Midwest ISO's effectiveness. He said the Kentucky Public Service Commission has started examining the membership of two Kentucky utilities in the organization.
"I believe it is a serious problem," Taft said Tuesday of the two RTOs in Ohio. "If it is a serious problem, what kind of steps can Ohio take working with the federal government to bring Ohio under one regional transmission organization?"
Investigators are looking into Midwest ISO's role in the blackout, and specifically whether the group's control of member utilities contributed to the outage's spread. Unlike more established groups in the East, Midwest ISO, which has been operating for less than two years, lacks the ability to directly isolate outages.
Midwest ISO has been working with PJM on reliability problems and will be happy to answer any questions posed by Schriber, said spokeswoman Mary Lyn Webster.
PJM spokesman Ray Dotter said the companies "have been working diligently on operating agreements on how functions are shared in the region to ensure things flow smooth and reliably."
Schriber said the two companies operate differently, but stopped short of criticizing their ability to communicate.
"What we need to determine is how well they communicate and whether or not their communication capabilities (are) an impediment to an efficient system in Ohio overall," Schriber said Tuesday.
In Ohio, federal regulators have approved American Electric Power Co.'s joining PJM, but Virginia - which also has AEP lines - has blocked the move. Dayton Power and Light and Allegheny Power also are PJM members.
FirstEnergy Corp. and Cinergy Co. are members of the Midwest ISO.
Having a single RTO for a state does not always ensure reliable transmission, said Philip Mihlmester, senior vice president of ICF Consulting, a Virginia-based energy and environment consulting firm.
New York, which has a single RTO, lost power during the blackout, Mihlmester said. Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland, all served by PJM, did not, he said.
"It has less to do with state boundaries and more to do with utility transmission seams and grid operations," Mihlmester said. "The grid does not always conform to state lines."
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