Transmission reliability and security under open access

In this paper the author suggests that many of the challenges presented are direct result of the institutional dichotomy within the once vertically integrated industry. Namely, while the generation portion of this industry has made major progress toward becoming for profit, value-based industry, both the delivery (transmission) and the end user (distribution) remainders are left without any clear institutional support to adjust and provide their value to the end users in the changing industry. Moreover, since the efficient and reliable operation of the electric power grid is very complex, the engineers have relied heavily over the past 20-30 years on on-line system monitoring (including state estimation), and computer methods for decision-making and system automation. These tools are difficult to develop and use for supporting efficient generation, delivery and consumption without bringing the system closer to the limits of what is possible. The lack of real economic incentives to push the system operations to its limits for efficiency reasons combined with the complexities and risks of operating close to the system stability margins has resulted in the predictable situation the industry is currently facing. Also, the she suggested that in order to move forward and provide some more natural ways of valuing generation, transmission, distribution and customers' willingness to respond to the changing system constraints, several issues must be solved. In this presentation we introduce some possible institutional and technological approaches to solving the system reliability problems in the changing industry.