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Topics covered by this working group include system operation and operating practices, including critical interfaces among electric, thermal and fuel systems; market design and operation; and operational forecasting.

Members of the System Operation & Market Design Working Group are encouraged to interact with one another via Groups.IO, an online discussion platform and community network. The ESIG Resource Library is also a valuable tool for those seeking information on System Operation & Market Design, as well as other topics.

Links to both can be found below:

 

 

 

 

(Please note: only members of ESIG may participate in the Working/Users Groups. If you are interested in membership, please email us at info@esig.energy)

Working Group Co-Chairs: Aidan Tuohy & Erik Ela, EPRI
Aidan Tuohy is a Senior Program Manager at EPRI, where he is the program manager for the research program on Bulk System Integration of Variable and Distributed Energy Resources.
Erik Ela is Principal at EPRI, performing research in various areas of electric power system operations, planning, and wholesale electricity market operations.

Markets for 100% Clean Electricity Task Force

Electric power systems are undergoing major transformation. Organized electricity markets may play a key role on these systems of the future and achieving a system that can meet climate goals while still maintaining our everlasting goals of affordability and reliability.

Linked below is a summary of conversations from a workshop on electricity markets under deep decarbonization held from February 28 to March 1, 2023, in Washington, DC. Sponsors were the Energy Systems Integration Group, Electric Power Research Institute, Argonne National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, and the Department of Energy. The workshop convened a set of experts to listen and debate the existing market designs and their effectiveness, solutions that have been explored and their effectiveness, and the possible actions necessary to bridge remaining gaps.

Task Force Lead: Robin Hytowitz, NextEra Analytics
Robin Hytowitz is an Energy Management Advisor at NextEra Analytics.

Weather Datasets Project Team

The energy transition is shifting the impact of weather on grid planning and operations, from one where weather (chiefly temperature) plays a primary role in modulating peak load and its timing, to one where weather is instrumental in driving system risks across multiple interconnected dimensions. Impacts include: wind and solar generation, load shape and magnitude, storage charge/discharge, and drivers of traditional system outages. This task force seeks to convene a cross-disciplinary group of system engineers and atmospheric scientists to advance the application of weather data in power systems planning and operations. The focus will be on better use of existing weather inputs in resource adequacy analysis, including for capacity expansion and production cost modeling, and upon determining what is needed from a “next generation” dataset that will serve the needs of the sector throughout the energy transition.

Completed work includes:

  • Executive Summary
  • Weather Dataset Needs for Planning and Analyzing Modern Power Systems (Full Report). This is the complete text of the report, including detail on all aspects of the gaps, needs, and solutions, as well as a section covering meteorology fundamentals for power systems planners, engineers, and others. This full version is intended for technical experts engaged deeply in this work. (108 pages, plus glossary, references, and appendices) A high-resolution version of the full report can be found here (40MB).
  • Weather Dataset Needs for Planning and Analyzing Modern Power Systems (Summary Report). The summary report distills the gaps, needs, and solutions, and does not include the full background section on meteorology fundamentals. This version is intended for a broader audience in power system planning, and it can be paired with “Meteorology 101” if further detail on meteorology for power system modeling and planning is desired. (34 pages, plus selected bibliography and appendix)
  • “Meteorology 101: Meteorological Data Fundamentals for Power System Planning.” This overview of meteorology for power system planners, engineers, modelers, and others is a stand-alone version of Section 2 in the full report. We have published it as a stand-alone document to accompany the summary version of the report, for readers of the summary who wish to delve more deeply into datasets and models used in power system planning studies.

Project Team Lead: Justin Sharp, Sharply Focused
Justin Sharp is the principal and owner of Sharply Focused LLC, a consultancy specializing in the intersection of atmospheric sciences and the electric utility sector.

Flexibility Resources Task Force

Emerging flexibility resources such as hydrogen and industrial electrification will become important as we look to meet decarbonization goals. In this task force, the focus is on understanding the role of and integration of future flexibility resources (including industrial electrification, hydrogen and low/zero-carbon fuels), and to reach a common understanding of how to assess and integrate these new flexibility resources. The TF is reviewing international experiences, and identifying gaps and challenges in integration of new flexibility resources.

Current work underway includes:

  • Developing policy brief
  • Developing blog post

Completed work includes:

Task Force Lead: Aidan Tuohy, EPRI
Aidan Tuohy is a Senior Program Manager at EPRI, where he is the program manager for the research program on Bulk System Integration of Variable and Distributed Energy Resources.

Redefining Resource Adequacy (Capacity Accreditation)

This task force seeks to evaluate the state of the art practice for capacity accreditation. It will evaluate novel capacity accreditation methods and procurement mechanisms necessary for system planning and reliability with a changing energy mix, new technologies, and decarbonization goals.

Completed work includes:

Task Force Lead: Derek Stenclik, Telos Energy
Derek Stenclik is the Founding Partner of Telos Energy, an engineering and analytics firm specializing in renewable integration and power system planning. He has over a decade of experience helping clients across the electric power industry navigate evolving markets, adapt to rapidly changing technologies, and accelerate clean energy integration.

Recently Completed Work

Hybrids and Emerging Flexible Resources Task Force (HyFlex)

The purpose of this task force is to create a working community to develop concepts around emerging co-located, hybrid and highly flexible resources. These approaches are rapidly growing for digitally-controlled, integrated technologies such as PV solar with battery storage, but the concepts may apply broadly to combined technologies, aggregated distributed energy resources, and hierarchies of devices on both transmission and distribution systems.

Completed work includes:

Task Force Lead: Derek Stenclik, Telos Energy
Derek Stenclik is the Founding Partner of Telos Energy, an engineering and analytics firm specializing in renewable integration and power system planning. He has over a decade of experience helping clients across the electric power industry navigate evolving markets, adapt to rapidly changing technologies, and accelerate clean energy integration.