Utility Selector
Finding, filtering, watching, and selecting utilities for interconnection requirements.
Utilities Available for New Projects
In Create Project, normal utility choices require a released, full packet setup for the chosen state and program. By default, a real receiving organization is not needed for private review. Authorized synthetic choices require a validated test pairing backed by a released utility; they cannot activate real utility intake. A Research selection must qualify too. If availability cannot be confirmed, use Retry; if setup is incomplete, contact support. Availability does not guarantee exhaustive requirement coverage, utility approval, or permission to submit a packet to the utility.
Utility Research still searches the full catalog. A research listing alone does not mean packet review is supported. Review coverage depends on the utility's supported state and interconnection program. The RTO overview is available in Research, not in the new-project picker.
Search vs Browse Modes
Search Mode
Type keywords to find utilities by:
- Name (e.g., "Duke Energy")
- Known alias (e.g., an acronym such as "NSP")
- State (e.g., "North Carolina")
- Region (e.g., "Southeast")
Browse Mode
View utilities grouped by ISO/RTO for discovery:
- All utilities in a region displayed together
- Easy comparison of options
- See queue statistics at a glance
Canonical and Synthetic Options
The selector keeps canonical EIA-backed utility records separate from authorized synthetic test tenants. Synthetic results have a Synthetic badge and state which canonical utility supplies their requirements.
- A regular result is the canonical utility record used for research and requirements.
- A result with a Synthetic badge is an authorized test utility tenant. Its subtitle names the canonical utility whose requirements it uses.
Platform administrators can find every valid, reciprocally paired synthetic utility. Other users can find only the synthetic utilities explicitly paired to their active applicant organization. One test developer can have several utility destinations, with one destination per canonical utility. Invalid or one-sided test pairings remain hidden.
Selecting a synthetic option keeps document, requirement, and validation context on the named canonical utility. When a project is created, the server verifies the active organization and reciprocal pairing again before choosing the synthetic destination; the visible label is not treated as authorization.
Filtering by Utility Type
Use the type filter tabs at the top of the dialog:
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| All | Show all utility types |
| IOU | Investor-Owned Utility (e.g., Duke Energy, Dominion) |
| RTO | Regional Transmission Organization (e.g., PJM, MISO) — opens the RTO Overview Dashboard |
| Municipal | City-owned utilities |
| Coop | Rural electric cooperatives |
State Filter Dropdown
A state dropdown sits alongside the type tabs. It narrows results to utilities operating in a specific state. All service states are populated automatically. Combine with type filters for precise results (e.g., IOU + North Carolina).
Multi-State Utility Selection
Inside Create Project, the utility and state controls stack at full width. The state-selection Cancel control dismisses only the pending utility choice; it does not create or close the project.
Some utilities operate in multiple states with different requirements:
Example: Duke Energy
- Duke Energy NC (North Carolina rules)
- Duke Energy SC (South Carolina rules)
- Duke Energy FL (Florida rules)
When selecting these, you must also choose the specific state for accurate requirements. Each state has its own regulatory framework, fee structures, notice requirements, and community engagement rules.
RTO Overview Dashboard
Selecting the RTO type filter tab displays an RTO Overview Dashboard instead of a utility list. Each RTO card shows the RTO name, active capacity, project count, and other aggregate statistics.
Click an RTO card to drill into the utilities under that RTO. A "Back to RTOs" breadcrumb appears at the top to return to the overview grid.
Understanding Utility Information
Each utility row shows:
| Element | Description |
|---|---|
| Logo | Favicon from utility website |
| Name | Utility display name |
| Synthetic badge | Marks an authorized test utility tenant; its subtitle names the canonical requirements source |
| Type label | Full label — "Investor-Owned Utility", "Regional Transmission Org", "Municipal Utility", or "Electric Cooperative" |
| Service states | Geographic coverage with map pin icon (truncated to 4 states, then "+N") |
| Balancing authority / Region | Regional grid information |
| Queue stats | Active capacity and wait time — shown in search mode only |
| Customer count badge | Approximate customer count (e.g., "5.8M", "450K") |
| Watch button | Star icon to subscribe/unsubscribe to change monitoring (see below) |
| Program chips | One chip per published program (for example Simplified, Expedited, Standard); clicking one opens that program — see Programs in the Selector. Utilities without a reviewed program show the document and requirements count badges instead |
Watch/Unwatch Utility Subscriptions
Each utility row has a star icon button for change monitoring subscriptions.
- Watch — Click the star to subscribe. You will receive notifications when that utility's interconnection procedures or requirements change.
- Unwatch — Click the star again to unsubscribe.
- When a state filter is active or the utility has a single service state, the subscription is scoped to that state. Multi-state utilities without a state filter subscribe at the utility level.
- Watch status loads when the dialog opens and updates instantly on toggle. If the active organization cannot use change monitoring, the management link stays hidden rather than sending the user to a dashboard section they do not have.
- Manage Watched Utilities in the dialog header opens the dashboard's Requirements Change Monitoring card, which lists every active subscription and recent detected changes. It appears only for organizations that have change monitoring. The star is the only place to subscribe — the console header no longer carries a watch control, because a subscription belongs to a utility rather than to the project you happen to have open.
Watch and Unwatch are available only in a developer organization context and are write operations. Direct users need an active Member, Admin, or Owner role. Grant-derived access also needs a write or admin grant and a Member-or-higher role in the receiving organization. Viewer and read-grant access remain read-only.
Programs in the Selector
A program is the utility's interconnection track (in Massachusetts: Simplified, Expedited, Standard). The selector captures which program you care about so Utility Research opens on it directly.
- Click a program chip on a utility row — Selects the utility AND opens Utility Research on Procedure Docs for that program.
- Click the row itself — Selects the utility, then a small Which program? step lists its published programs. Pick one, or Skip, show all programs; closing the step counts as skip. A utility with one program lands on it without asking.
- For multi-state utilities, state selection comes first; a chip's program carries through to the state step.
- GridWonk remembers the program per utility in this browser. Switch programs any time from the Program segment in the console header (Utility › Program).
- Utilities without a reviewed program show the document (blue) and requirements (purple) count badges; those open Procedure Docs or Requirements.
The document badge follows current-procedure enforcement and counts current usable procedure documents when that safeguard is enabled. The requirement badge counts individual requirements in the technically published Packet Intake catalog. It does not count rows in the frozen legacy requirements table.
Resizable Dialog
The selector dialog can be resized by dragging the handle in the bottom-right corner.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Default size | 700 x 500 px |
| Minimum size | 450 x 300 px |
| Maximum size | 1200 x 800 px |
| Persistence | Dimensions saved to localStorage |
| Reset | "Reset size" button appears when dimensions differ from default |
Virtualized List
For performance with 1000+ utilities, the list uses virtualization — only visible rows are rendered. This keeps scrolling smooth regardless of result count.
How Selection Affects Console
Selecting a utility loads that utility-specific:
- Documents — Discovered procedure documents
- Requirements — Published Packet Intake requirements
- Validation rules — Utility-specific deficiency checks
- Queue analytics — Regional data
In the project-first console, selecting or opening a project can also set the utility, state, and distribution/transmission filter from the project record. A shared URL with submissionId points GridWonk at the saved project first, then hydrates the matching utility context.
Changing the research utility updates reference context and clears transient selections. It does not delete project documents or stored review results; reopen the project to return to its work.
Utility application review requires an organization linked to a utility. If the active organization is not linked to one, the Applications and Screening views show an empty utility-linked state instead of loading another utility's queue.
Asking the Assistant About Utilities
Useful utility-selection questions include:
- "Which Duke Energy state should I choose?"
- "Why does GridWonk need a specific state for Duke Energy?"
- "Show utilities in North Carolina with extracted requirements."