The Energy Information Administration (EIA) is the
U.S. Government's energy statistical agency and as such does not normally
collect detailed engineering data related to the reliability of power systems.
However we do collect and publish information related to electricity supply,
demand, prices, future trends and details on generation facilities. A summary
of this information, plus other helpful links, appear below. If this information
is not sufficient to answer your questions, please feel free to call our National
Energy Information Center at 202 586-8800 or email them at infoctr@eia.doe.gov.
Energy Information Administration Data and Analysis
Major Disturbances and
Unusual Occurrences (published in the EIA Electric Power Monthly)
Reserve margins: The amount of unused available capability of an
electric power system (at peak load for a utility system) as a percentage
of total capability.
Generator
capacity: The maximum output, commonly expressed in megawatts (MW), that
generating equipment can supply to system load, adjusted for ambient conditions.
Planned
Capacity Additions: The proposed number of the additional amount
of electric power delivered or required for which a generator, turbine, transformer,
transmission circuit, station, or system is rated by the manufacturer.
Net
generation: The amount of gross generation less the electrical energy
consumed at the generating station(s) for station service or auxiliaries.
Note: Electricity required for pumping at pumped-storage plants is regarded
as electricity for station service and is deducted from gross generation.
Number of customers:
Number of residential, commercial and industrial retail customers.
Retail
Sales: Sales covering electrical energy supplied for residential, commercial,
and industrial end-use purposes. Other small classes, such as agriculture
and street lighting, also are included in this category.
The Electric Transmission
Network: A Multi-Region Analysis (November 2000):
This
paper is a follow-up effort to a preliminary analysis published in 1998 in
which the electric transmission system for the New England Power Pool (NEPOOL)
was used to determine whether transmission bottlenecks—referred to as congestion—might
prevent consumers from receiving the full benefits of competition.
Electricity
Prices in Competitive Environment: Marginal Cost Pricing of Generation Services
and Financial Status of Electric Utilities: This paper presents some of
the potential impacts of the competitive pricing of electricity in the United
States, based on widely accepted principles of economic theory.
Competitive Electricity Prices: An Update: This
paper updates the work prepared in Electricity Prices in a Competitive Environment:
Marginal Cost Pricing of Generation Services and Financial Status of Electric
Utilities, (August 1997). This paper is in the EIA report Issues
in Midterm Analysis and Forecasting 1998.
Information available from the North American
Electricity Reliability Corporation (NERC)
Effective January 1, 2007, the North American Electric Reliability Council and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation merged, with NERC Corporation being the surviving entity. NERC Corporation was certified as the “electric reliability organization” by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 20, 2006.
NERC’s mission is to improve the reliability and security of the bulk power system in North America. To achieve that, NERC develops and enforces reliability standards; monitors the bulk power system; assesses future adequacy; audits owners, operators, and users for preparedness; and educates and trains industry personnel. NERC is a self-regulatory organization that relies on the diverse and collective expertise of industry participants. As the Electric Reliability Organization, NERC is subject to audit by the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and governmental authorities in Canada.
NERC works with eight Regional Reliability Councils to improve the reliability of the bulk power system. The members of the regional councils come from all segments of the electric industry: investor-owned utilities; federal power agencies; rural electric cooperatives; state, municipal and provincial utilities; independent power producers; power marketers; and end-use customers. These entities account for virtually all the electricity supplied in the United States, Canada, and a portion of Baja California Norte, Mexico. NERC’s proposal to delegate enforcement authority to eight regional entities is pending before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
- Disturbance Analysis Working Group (DAWG)
Database: summarizes disturbances that occur on
the bulk electric systems of the electric utilities in North America. This
Database is based on major electric utility system disturbances reported
to the Department of Energy (DOE) and NERC.
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