Load Participation in Electricity Markets: Day-Ahead and Hour-Ahead Market Coupling with Wholesale/Transmission and Retail/Distribution Cost and Congestion Modeling

We consider load-side participation in electricity markets construed broadly to include energy as well as reserve transactions. Extending work in optimal plug-in-hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) charging, we develop a decision support tool for load-side participation in energy markets, recognizing that it must be responsive to local distribution network dynamic congestion and marginal line loses. We address the related sequential day-ahead and hour-ahead/real-time markets by modeling the interaction of a Load Aggregator (LA) participating in the transmission-level wholesale electricity market with its Smart Microgrid Affiliates (SMAs) connected at the distribution network. We optimize bidding of the LA to the day-ahead market coordinated with real-time market bidding of both the LA and SMAs.