Fundamentals of Today's U.S. Electric Power Industry, the Smart Grid, ISO Markets & Wholesale Power Transactions

• The structure and function of the electric service system, its terminology and units, and the properties of electricity.
• How the North American power grid is structured and how it operates; how the major sources of electric generation work ( coal, natural gas, nuclear, renewables ) and the issues they face; how control areas, spinning reserves, AGC and economic dispatch works.
• Who the key players in the industry are, and why the industry is so difficult to restructure.
• The differences between cost-of-service regulation, open access markets, ISOs, transcos, ITCs, RTOs, and ICTs.
• What the "smart grid" is, a summary of the different business models being tested, a discussion of the key issues and and how the smart grid is likely to develop.
• The major issues facing wind energy, solar and other renewables and how these generation sources relate to the proposed buildout of the backbone power grid.
• How ISO Day-Ahead auction markets operate, or will operate, in PJM, New York, Texas, California and other markets; what locational marginal pricing (LMP) is, and why it is important; how LMP is applied in the ISO markets, and why FTRs, TCCs, CRRs, TLRs, RPM and forward capacity markets are important concepts to understand. (The seminars presented at the Houston and California locations will discuss the Texas and California/Western Power markets respectively. Philadelphia, New York and Washington D.C. seminars will focus on PJM, MISO and the New York ISO.)
• The structure and characteristics of the bilateral spot and forward wholesale power markets.
• The terminology, concepts and mechanics of bulk power trading, and the difference between physical, scheduled and contract path power flows.
• Why open access retail electricity markets may finally now develop.
• The basics of executing a wholesale power transaction - including common contract language and what NERC tags are.
• What "sellers choice is", and how forward "daisy chains" form at virtual trading hubs.
• How to financially trade physical power with financial bookouts.
• An overview of the three different types of forward electricity markets: physical, over-the-counter financial and NYMEX futures.
• The basics of the NYMEX electricity futures contract, and how it can be used to hedge electricity price risk
• An introduction to electricity swaps and Cfds and how these relate to ISO financial transmission rights.
• The definition of heat rates, spark spreads, dark spreads and heat-rate-linked power transactions.

• The properties and terminology of electricity - current, power, var, voltage, etc
• An overview of the electric service system, and how it works
• The pros and cons of different sources of electric generation ( coal, natural gas, nuclear, renewables ), and how they work.
• The structure and function of the North American power grid.
• Who the various industry participants are and their roles.
• Why restructuring today's power markets is such a complicated task.
• How control areas function, what spinning reserves are, and how the lights are kept on.
• A summary of FERC Orders 888, 889, & 2000
• The difference between ISOs, ITCs, Transcos and RTOs.
• What TLRs, ATC, OASIS, pancaking rates, shrinkage, economic dispatch and other terms mean.
• What locational Marginal Pricing (LMP) is and why it's used
• What the "smart grid" is, a summary of the different business models being tested, a discussion of the key issues and and how the smart grid is likely to develop.
• The major issues facing wind energy, solar and other renwables and how these generation sources relate to the proposed buildout of the backbone power grid.
• The difference between auction and bilateral bulk power markets and the pros & cons of each
• The fundamentals of the PJM, MISO, ERCOT or California wholesale market (Depending on seminar location) and the role of LMP
• How the PJM/MISO/ERCOT/California two-settlement energy and Day-Ahead markets operate, or will operate.
• The meaning of the terms "RPM" and "Forward Capacity Markets " and why this issue is important.
• A summary of the key issues of today and where the U. S. electric power industry is headed, including a discussion of the smart grid, renewable energy and the building of new transmission lines..
• The pros & cons of PJM's RPM generation capacity planning proposal versus MISO's energy-only market-based approach.
• What PJM FTRs are; their equivalent names in other ISOs, and how and why these financial instruments are used.
• An overview of the similarities and differences between the PJM, New York, New England, MISO, ERCOT and/or California markets. (Depending on seminar location)
• The fundamentals of bilateral bulk power trading units and terminology.
• The three different types of wholesale forward power markets.
• Common contract language used for bilateral power transactions.
• What OASIS & NERC tags are.
• How power marketers and traders use "sellers choice" to buy and sell forward power at "virtual hubs" across North America.

This two-day seminar will be held at the hotels listed below or can be conducted on-site at your facilities. It starts promptly at 8:00 AM and finishes at 4:30 PM on the first day; on the second day it resumes at 8:00 AM and finishes at 3:00 PM. Continental breakfast, lunch, and coffee breaks are included on day one; continental breakfast, a snack, and coffee breaks on day two. Attendees receive a professionally produced seminar manual. Dress is casual.

COVID-19 Information: Please see the PGS COVID-19 policy. You can confirm each hotel's specific COVID-19 policy using the link(s) below.

The price for this comprehensive two-day seminar is $2,395 (USD).

Register online or call (843) 212-4038.

Save $100 per seminar order if you register before the cutoff date.

• Additional attendees and government employees receive a 10% discount.
• Register 4 or more attendees and receive 20% off. Special pricing is available for groups of 5 or more. Call (843) 212-4038 for assistance.

Payment is due prior to the start of the seminar by Visa, Master Card, American Express, or corporate check. Seminar fees are charged at the time of registration unless other arrangements have been made. Checks payable to “PGS Energy Training,” 26 Teal Lane, Hilton Head Island, SC 29926. Cancellations result in a credit good for 2 years, transferable to a colleague. Substitutions may be made at any time. For more on PGS policies, contact our offices at (843) 212-4038.

This live group seminar is eligible for 14.5 CPE credits in Specialized Knowledge. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit.

As of January 1, 2002, sponsored learning activities are measured by program length, with one 50-minute period equal to one CPE credit. One-half CPE credit increments (equal to 25 minutes) are permitted after the first credit has been earned in a given learning activity. You may want to verify that the state board from which your participants will be receiving credit accepts one-half credits.

PGS is a NASBA-registered CPE sponsor and a GARP-approved CPD provider, so see accreditation details.