Deregulation is a fairly new paradigm in the electric power industry. And just as in the case of other industries where it has been introduced, the goal of deregulation is to enhance competition and bring consumers new choices and economic benefits. The process has, obviously, necessitated reformulation of established models of power system operation and control activities. Similarly, issues such as system reliability, control, security and power quality in this new environment have come in for scrutiny and debate. In this book, we attempt to present a comprehensive overview of the deregulation process that has developed till now, focussing on the operation aspects. As of now, restructured electricity markets have been established in various degrees and forms in many countries. This book comes at a time when the deregulation process is poised to undergo further rapid advancements. It is envisaged that the reader will benefit by way of an enhanced understanding of power system operations in the conventional vertically integrated environment vis-a-vis the deregulated environment. The book is aimed at a wide range of audience- electric utility personnel involved in scheduling, dispatch, grid operations and related activities, personnel involved in energy trading businesses and electricity markets, institutions involved in energy sector financing. Power engineers, energy economists, researchers in utilities and universities should find the treatment of mathematical models as well as emphasis on recent research work helpful.

Deregulation is a fairly new paradigm in the electric power industry. And just as in the case of other industries where it has been introduced, the goal of deregulation is to enhance competition and bring consumers new choices and economic benefits. The process has, obviously, necessitated reformulation of established models of power system operation and control activities. Similarly, issues such as system reliability, control, security and power quality in this new environment have come in for scrutiny and debate. In this book, we attempt to present a comprehensive overview of the deregulation process that has developed till now, focussing on the operation aspects. As of now, restructured electricity markets have been established in various degrees and forms in many countries. This book comes at a time when the deregulation process is poised to undergo further rapid advancements. It is envisaged that the reader will benefit by way of an enhanced understanding of power system operations in the conventional vertically integrated environment vis-a-vis the deregulated environment. The book is aimed at a wide range of audience- electric utility personnel involved in scheduling, dispatch, grid operations and related activities, personnel involved in energy trading businesses and electricity markets, institutions involved in energy sector financing. Power engineers, energy economists, researchers in utilities and universities should find the treatment of mathematical models as well as emphasis on recent research work helpful.

The integration of new sources of energy like wind power, solar-power, small-scale generation, or combined heat and power in the power grid is something that impacts a lot of stakeholders: network companies (both distribution and transmission), the owners and operators of the DG units, other end-users of the power grid (including normal consumers like you and me) and not in the least policy makers and regulators.

There is a lot of misunderstanding about the impact of DG on the power grid, with one side (including mainly some but certainly not all, network companies) claiming that the lights will go out soon, whereas the other side (including some DG operators and large parks of the general public) claiming that there is nothing to worry about and that it's all a conspiracy of the large production companies that want to protect their own interests and keep the electricity price high.

The authors are of the strong opinion that this is NOT the way one should approach such an important subject as the integration of new, more environmentally friendly, sources of energy in the power grid. With this book the authors aim to bring some clarity to the debate allowing all stakeholders together to move to a solution. This book will introduce systematic and transparent methods for quantifying the impact of DG on the power grid.