Industrial Powerhouse Optimization in the Deregulated Electricity Marketplace

摘要

The State of Delaware deregulated the retail sale of electricity in 2002, enabling buyers to procure power on a real-time price schedule and sell excess generated power to the grid. This initiative has prompted industrial sites, especially those with on-site generation capability, to evaluate the benefits and risks of the deregulated market. Deregulation can offer significant potential savings to industrial customers. However, with this opportunity comes exposure to turbulent fluctuations in electricity prices, which can sometimes reach $1,000/MW-hr. If a customer is unprepared for high electricity prices, an entire year of electricity cost savings can quickly be erased. This paper describes how one industrial site evaluated the risks and benefits of electricity deregulation and implemented real-time optimization of the electricity make-buy decision.