This is the 4th in a series of posts on the national electrical grid. In previous posts I have described the components of The Grid, the National Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) role in regulating The Grid, and the general flow of electricity in The Grid. This post focuses on Missouri’s position on The Grid.

Figure 1. Source: North American Reliability Corporation 2017.

NERC organizes its reliability report according to assessment regions. Missouri is divided among 3 assessment regions (Figure 1). Shown in dark blue, portions of western Missouri fall into the SPP Region (Southwest Power Pool). Shown in gray, Central Missouri, running from Arkansas to Iowa, falls into SERC-North (Southeast Electric Reliability Corporation-North). Shown in dark blue, part of Eastern Missouri falls into the MISO (Midwest Independent Service Organization).

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Figure 2. Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration 2018a.

In 2016 Missouri was a net electricity importer. A total of 5,252,645 MWh (billion watt-hours) were imported from other states, and none were exported. Figure 2 shows that in the 1990s, Missouri was a large energy importer, then it became an exporter in 2003, but then reverted to being an importer in 2014.

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Missouri’s largest generating plants (by the amount of electricity generated) are shown in Table 1. Combined, they account for about 84% of Missouri’s net generation. For a photo and brief description of many of these power plants, see here.

Table 1: Missouri’s 10 Largest Electricity Generating Plants:

(Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2018a)

Figure 3. The High Voltage Generation and Distribution System in Missouri. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration 2018b.

Figure 3 shows The Grid within Missouri. In purple-gray it shows lines operating at 765 kilovolts all the way down to 69 kilovolts (more lines are shown in this map than in the map in the previous post because 69 kV is a lower cutoff than was used for that map). The brown lines are roads. It also shows Missouri’s generating stations by type. There are actually a fair number of natural gas generating stations, shown in blue with a white center. However, 8 of the 10 largest power plants are coal.

The largest electricity retailers in Missouri, by sales, are Union Electric (a subsidiary of Ameren Missouri), Kansas City Power & Light (a subsidiary of Great Plains Energy), KCP&L Greater Missouri Operations (a subsidiary of Great Plains Energy), Empire District Electric, and City Utilities of Springfield. Union Electric’s sales are almost 4 times those of the next largest. (Energy Information Administration, 2018a)

The low voltage distribution networks of the public utilities and electrical cooperatives throughout the state are, of course, extensive. Ameren claims to operate 7,500 miles of local transmission line, while Great Plains Energy claims to operate 3,600 miles. These posts focus on the bulk power system, however.

Sources:

Ameren. Ameren Facts and Figures. Viewed online 5/21/2018 at https://www.ameren.com/about/facts.

North American Electrical Reliability Corporation. 2017. 2017 Long-Term Reliability Assessment. Downloaded 4/27/2018 from https://www.nerc.com/pa/RAPA/ra/Pages/default.aspx.

U.S. Energy Information Administration. 2018a. Missouri Electricity Profile 2016, Full Data Tables 1-14.. Downloaded 5/10/1018 from https://www.eia.gov/electricity/state/missouri.

U.S. Energy Information Administration. 2018b. U.S. Energy Mapping System. https://www.eia.gov/state/maps.php.

Westar Energy & Great Plains Energy. Merger to Form Leading Company: January 2018 Investor Update. Viewed 5/21/2018 at http://www.greatplainsenergy.com/static-files/b8b91848-48a6-4f88-8fd3-df3b59316b96.