Planning for Reliability, Economics, and the Environment in a Deregulated Market

The ISO New England planning(1) process calls for providing reliability, economic, and environmental information to participants. This includes summaries of loss of load expectation studies, transmission adequacy evaluations, environmental issues and performance, and locational marginal pricing, production cost, and congestion information. Short term certainty of resources is provided by the Forward Capacity Market that is designed to provide supply and demand-side resources where needed approximately three years into the future. Resources that qualify for bidding into this market also suggest where longer term development is likely. As part of its planning process, ISO New England also provides information on environmental issues, such as the region wide Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (a carbon dioxide cap and trade system in the Northeastern United States) and Renewable Portfolio Standards (state requirements that require load to purchase energy from low emitting resources). Historical economic information is provided in an annual markets report and supplemental information. A recent scenario analysis initiative provided long-term economic and environmental results for various types of resource expansions with the goal of providing needed information to policy makers. Finally, if sufficient market solutions aren't forthcoming, transmission solutions are developed to meet the reliability and economic needs of the system. These transmission improvements have ranged from major transmission lines through those that provide better control of the network through Flexible Alternating Current Transmission Systems and High Voltage Direct Current installations.