Why No State Stands Alone: The Shared Power of Regional Transmission

The briefing explains that the western grid operates as an interconnected web where electricity flows across state and utility boundaries to balance supply and demand. It highlights that most major utilities in the West acted as both importers and exporters of electricity in 2024, providing a critical safety net during emergencies. Case studies from 2024 illustrate how the Pacific Northwest relied on imports from the Southwest and Rockies during a January cold snap, and how Montana imported 59% of its demand during a July heat wave and generator outage. The document concludes that increasing demand from AI and manufacturing necessitates further investment in regional transmission planning and projects like SunZia and Greenlink.

• The western grid functions as a shared system where utilities continuously route power across state boundaries to maintain reliability and affordability, with most major utilities in each state serving as both electricity importers and exporters in 2024.
• Regional transmission is critical during grid emergencies; in the most challenging peak hours of 2024, some states depended on imports for as much as 70 percent of their electricity requirements.
• During a reliability emergency caused by a cold snap from January 11th to 17th, 2024, the Pacific Northwest imported an average of approximately 4,700 MW during peak hours, with power primarily coming from the Rockies and Southwest regions.
• In July 2024, a combination of a heat wave, a storm, and the failure of its largest generator led NorthWestern Energy in Montana to reach a peak import level of 59 percent of its demand.
• Future electricity demand driven by manufacturing and AI will require additional generation and regional transmission, with several upcoming projects including Greenlink, SunZia, Gateway, SWIP North, and Boardman to Hemingway.

APA

RMI (2025). Why No State Stands Alone: The Shared Power of Regional Transmission. https://rmi.org/resources/why-no-state-stands-alone-the-shared-power-of-regional-transmission/

Chicago

RMI. Why No State Stands Alone: The Shared Power of Regional Transmission. 2025. https://rmi.org/resources/why-no-state-stands-alone-the-shared-power-of-regional-transmission/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Why No State Stands Alone: The Shared Power of Regional Transmission |date=30 September 2025 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/why-no-state-stands-alone-the-shared-power-of-regional-transmission/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2025why, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Why No State Stands Alone: The Shared Power of Regional Transmission}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/why-no-state-stands-alone-the-shared-power-of-regional-transmission/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }