Seminar Teaches Fundamentals of Today’s U.S. Electric Power Industry

PGS Energy Training offers an in-depth one-day program that provides a comprehensive and clearly explained understanding of the structure, function and current status of the U.S. electric power industry. The seminar also addresses the fundamentals of day-ahead auction markets, LMP, and how the PJM, New York, Texas and other ISO markets operate.

What the Course Covers:

1. The structure and function of the electric service system, its terminology and units, and the properties of electricity.
2. How the North American power grid is structured and how it operates; what the different types of electric generation are and the issues we face; and how control areas, spinning reserves, AGC and economic dispatch works.
3. Who the key players in the industry are, and why the industry is so difficult to restructure.
4. The differences between ISOs, transcos, ITCs, RTOs, and ICTs; and what today's ISO/RTO status is by region (Includes a detailed map).
5. How ISO Day-Ahead auction markets operate, or will operate, in PJM, New York, Texas, California and other markets; what locational marginal pricing (LMP) is, and why it is important; how LMP is applied in the PJM and other ISO markets, and why FTRs, TCCs, CRRs, TLRs, RPM and forward capacity markets are important concepts to understand. (The seminars presented at the Houston and California locations will discuss the Texas and California/Western Power markets respectively. PJM will be summarized at these locations.)

Seminar Agenda

• The properties and terminology of electricity - current, power, var, voltage, etc
• An overview of the electric service system, and how it works
• The pros and cons of different types of electric generation, and how they work.
• The structure and function of the North American power grid
• Who the various industry participants are and their roles
• Why restructuring today’s power markets is such a complicated task.
• How control areas function, what spinning reserves are, and how the lights are kept on.
• What happened with the August, 2003 blackout
• A summary of FERC Orders 888, 889, 2000 and SMD
• The difference between ISOs, ITCs, Transcos and RTOs are, and where they stand today.
• What TLRs, ATC, OASIS, pancaking rates, shrinkage and other terms mean.
• The different types of electric generating units and how the are economically dispatched.
• The different types of electric transmission service and how it's secured
• What locational Marginal Pricing (LMP) is and why it's used
• The difference between auction and bilateral bulk power markets and the pros & cons of each
• The fundamentals of the PJM, MISO, ERCOT or California market (Depending on seminar location) and the role of LMP
• How the PJM/MISO/ERCOT/California two-settlement energy and Day-Ahead markets operate, or will operate.
• The meaning of the terms "RPM" and "Forward Capacity Markets " and why these issues are important.
• A summary of the key issues of today and where the U. S. electric power industry is headed, including a brief discussion the implications of transmission rates on the building out the power grid.
• The pros & cons of PJM's RPM generation capacity planning proposal versus MISO's energy-only market-based approach.
• What PJM FTRs are; their equivalent names in other ISOs, and how and why these financial instruments are used.
• An overview of the similarities and differences between the PJM, New York, New England, MISO, ERCOT and/or California markets. (Depending on seminar location).