Recent electricity price spikes are painful reminders of the value that meaningful demand-side responses could bring to the restructuring US electricity system. Review of the aggregate offers made by suppliers confirms that even a modest increase demand elasticity could dramatically reduce these...

During the past few years, the costs and effects of utility demand-side management (DSM) programs have grown sharply. In 1989, US electric utilities spent 0.5% of revenues on such programs and cut total electricity consumption by 0.6%. By 1992, these numbers had increased to 1.3% and 1.2%,...

New technologies, low natural gas prices, and federal and state utility regions are restructuring the electricity industry. Yesterday`s vertically integrated utility with a retail monopoly franchise may be a very different organization in a few years. Conferences, regulatory-commission hearings,...

In part, the impetus for restructuring the U.S. electricity industry stems from the large regional disparities in electricity prices. Indeed, industry reforms are moving most rapidly in high-cost states, such as California and those in the Northeast. Legislators, regulators, and many others in...

A computer model was developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to analyze the electricity production, costs, and prices for two geographical regions for a single year. Bulk-power trading is allowed between the two regions and market clearing prices are determined based on marginal costs. The...