Non Wires Alternatives

Non-Wires Alternatives (NWAs) are electric utility system investments and operating practices that can defer or replace the need for specific transmission projects, at lower total resource cost, by reliably reducing transmission congestion at times of maximum demand in specific grid areas. NWAs are also known as Non-Transmission Alternatives (NTAs). They can be identified through least-cost planning and action, one geographic area at a time, for managing electricity supply and demand using all means available and necessary, including demand response, distributed generation (DG), energy efficiency, electricity and thermal storage, load management, and rate design.