Operation and planning of large-scale electric power systems

本研究涉及大型电力系统的运行与规划。一个问题是，在当前独立运行的竞争实体（其主要目标是各自的利润）的背景下，如何维持高水平的可靠性（传统上是中央管理和计划的任务）。这个问题既适用于短期的业务，也适用于长期的规划任务。在与电力市场相关的研究阶段，我们将研究如何识别发电公司的过度市场力量。将研究限制市场力量的机制，如新的电价规则、限制竞争主体的规模、需求弹性和价格上限。一个特别具有挑战性的问题是了解传输拥塞和多种产品市场（例如电力和储备）如何影响市场力量。这里要研究的第二个问题是将存储设施和可再生资源（如风能）整合到电网中。我们将研究这种整合对系统可靠性、储备需求和经济指标（如价格、利润和相关风险）的影响。

This research deals with the operation and planning of large-scale electric power systems. One concern is how high levels of reliability, traditionally a centrally administered and planned task, can be maintained in the current context of independently run competing entities whose primary goal is their individual profit. This question applies to both operation in the short-term and to long-term planning tasks. In the phase of the research related to electricity markets, we will examine how to identify excessive market power on the part of generating companies. Mechanisms to restrict market power will be studied such as new electricity pricing rules, limiting the size of the competing entities, demand elasticity and price caps. One particularly challenging problem is to understand how transmission congestion and multiple product markets (e.g. power and reserve)affect market power. A second issue to be researched here is that of integrating storage facilities and renewable resources such as wind power into electricity grids. We will examine the impact of such integration on system reliability, reserve needs and on economic measures such as prices, profits and associated risks.