Public Power Underground

Ben Serrurier, Lea Fisher, Matt Schroettnig, and Paul Dockery share some energy themed maybe-good-maybe-bad-brainstorming ideas during a special windowless conference room in-person recording.

Ben Serrurier, Lea Fisher, Matthew Schroettnig, and Paul Dockery were all in Anchorage, Alaska for NWPPA’s 83rd Annual Conference and Membership Meeting so they decided to borrow a windowless conference room for an informal brainstorming session about energy and energy-adjacent ideas. The format for the bonus episode is inspired by a Bill Simmons segment with Kevin Wildes on “The Bill Simmons Podcast” called “Half-Baked Ideas”1. 

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05:50 - Cowpoke ISO

09:20 - Kids & Grids Our Hidden Powers

14:18 - “Space: The Energy Frontier” - Space Elevator w/ Space Solar & Wireless Transmission PG&E & Start-Up Solaren Corp. Plan To Beam Solar Power From Space

21:38 - Wireless Transmission, just on it’s own

24:09 - District cooling Deep Lake Water Cooling System

27:32 - Cut me off, conservation

36:28 - Text-to-bid for price responsive demand; $ for % load reduced https://twitter.com/kyrib/status/1544018634762231808?s=20&t=7ewwz-xBMUixjkXEXe0BCw

45:30 - Connect & Manage for generator interconnection https://twitter.com/jacob_mays/status/1655966663135600640?s=20

50:02 - crypto as a battery; mandatory demand response programs for crypto mining facilities

52:02 - explain the grid to kids with jump rope https://twitter.com/NicoleKelner/status/1631352402086354945?s=20

52:57 - slower planes

55:58 - “Opt-in to save the distribution lines” // community infrastructure opt-in https://twitter.com/waDNR

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

1 the half-baked ideas segment starts at the 1:13:00 mark of the Bill Simmons Podcast episode

Pam Sporborg, Spencer Gray, Joe Taylor and Paul Dockery debrief and synthesize the discussion from an SPP Markets+ Leadership Forum hosted by Tacoma Power, NV Energy, and the Bonneville Power Administration on May 12th, 2023.

05:04 - Benefits, Opportunities and Barriers to Market Expansion

18:18 - Long-run resource portfolios adapted to market design

30:00 - Seams

41:49 - The toughest outstanding issues for market expansion in the west

56:13 - Final Predictions

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Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

learning lessons about deeply decarbonized electricity markets from around the world including optimal prices in non-convex markets, reliability insurance, and system security

Farhad Billimoria, Conleigh Byers, PhD, Ahlmahz Negash, PhD, and Paul Dockery discuss adaptation of market design for the energy transition including fat tails and increased exposure to extremes; batteries and price responsive demand; natural gas fragility and marginal pricing; and inverter-driven resources and system security. Then the team plays a new game where they synthesize expert explanations of convex vs non-convex pricing and reliability insurance. 

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05:30 - Lessons Learned on deeply decarbonized electric systems from electricity markets around the world with “Handbook on Electricity Markets” and P.L. Joskow’s “From hierarchies to markets and partially back again in electricity: responding to decarbonization and security of supply goals” as background

07:06 - Lesson 1: natural gas fragility and marginal pricing

17:20 - Lesson 2: batteries and price responsive demand

24:23 - Lesson 3: fat tails and increased exposure to extremes

38:20 - Lesson 4: Inverter based grids and system security (synchronous condensers and grid inertia)

48:15 - Wonky energy game synthesizing expert explanations

• Farhad Billimoria provides a 2 minute 20 second explanation of A reliability insurance overlay on energy-only electricity markets1; followed by the rest of the crew’s interpretation
• Conleigh Byers, PhD, provides a 2 minute 20 second explanation of Long-run optimal pricing in electricity markets with non-convex costs2; followed by the rest of the crew’s interpretation (and discussion of computational time for a solution using the Convex Hull pricing34)

1:27:36 - Ahlmahz’s insightful question of the week

1:32:18 - Conleigh Byers, PhD’s Closing Thoughts

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

1 Farhad Billimoria, Rahmatallah Poudineh, Market design for resource adequacy: A reliability insurance overlay on energy-only electricity markets, Utilities Policy, Volume 60, 2019, 100935, ISSN 0957-1787, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jup.2019.100935.

2 Conleigh Byers, Gabriela Hug, Long-run optimal pricing in electricity markets with non-convex costs, European Journal of Operational Research, Volume 307, Issue 1, 2023, Pages 351-363, ISSN 0377-2217, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2022.07.052.

3 P. Andrianesis, D. Bertsimas, M. C. Caramanis and W. W. Hogan, "Computation of Convex Hull Prices in Electricity Markets With Non-Convexities Using Dantzig-Wolfe Decomposition," in IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, vol. 37, no. 4, pp. 2578-2589, July 2022, doi: 10.1109/TPWRS.2021.3122000.

4 C. Byers and G. Hug, "Flexibility Compensation with Increasing Stochastic Variable Renewable Energy in Non-Convex Markets," 2022 17th International Conference on Probabilistic Methods Applied to Power Systems (PMAPS), Manchester, United Kingdom, 2022, pp. 1-6, doi: 10.1109/PMAPS53380.2022.9810627.

Emily Grubert, PhD, Frank Incropera, PhD, Ahlmahz Negash, PhD, and Paul Dockery discuss natural gas distribution system obsolescence, energy security during the transition away from fossil fuels, the magic of heat pumps, increased reliance on electric utility reliability, and the wickedness of the problem of a just energy transition.

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07:03 - Discussion of what constitutes a wicked problem and whether the mid-transition qualifies
     - Climate Change: A Wicked Problem by Frank Incropera, PhD, Chapter 1 - Energy, economics, and climate change
     - Residential Cold Climate Heat Pump Challenge | Department of Energy
     - News Releases - Rheem Manufacturing Company

44:57 - Natural Gas distribution systems’ obsolescence
     - Designing the mid-transition: A review of medium-term challenges for coordinated decarbonization in the United States
     - Grubert, E., & Hastings-Simon, S. (2022). Designing the mid-transition: A review of medium-term challenges for coordinated decarbonization in the United States. WIREs Climate Change, 13( 3), e768.

59:19 - Electrification of end-uses and the need for reliability
     - Climate Change: A Wicked Problem by Frank Incropera, PhD, Chapter 10 -      - The ethics of climate change

1:12:03 - Ahlmahz’s insightful question of the week

1:19:49 - Dr. Frank Incropera’s Closing Thoughts

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

Laura Trolese, Tyler Wolford, Matt Johnson, and Paul Dockery recorded an episode at a spas about how power contracts could change during a transition from bilateral to centrally dispatched markets.

In a special, bonus episode recorded at the One Ocean Resort & Spas in Atlantic Beach, Florida during The Energy Authority’s 2023 Energy Symposium, Laura Trolese, Tyler Wolford, Matt Johnson, and Paul Dockery discuss the impact of transitioning from bilateral markets to centrally dispatched day-ahead markets on long-term wholesale power supply agreements.

Caution: it gets extremely wonky.

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Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

Rob, Kathleen, Ahlmahz, and Paul discuss the transmission expansion: it's importance, it's barriers, and it's path forward.

Rob Gramlich, Kathleen Staks, Ahlmahz Negash, PhD, and Paul Dockery discuss transmission policy, planning, and funding in light of the increased need for an interconnected grid due to electrification of end-uses, new generator interconnections, and increasing footprint of extreme weather events.

07:34 - Department of Energy’s Grid Deployment Office release of a draft National Transmission Needs Study

23:43 - The Quagmire of Transmission Investment and Cost Recovery

• Rob’s 3 Ps of Transmission Policy Reform
• Rob’s tweets about the importance of solving the cost allocation quagmire
• A brilliant quote by Rob on the conundrum of transmission investment in a New York Times article
• Ahlmahz’s articles (part 1 and part 2) on the Grid as a Public Good

48:26 - Why transmission and market expansion is important to commercial and industrial customers

• Seattle utilities consider massive efforts that could help green our grid by Brendan Kiley in the Seattle Times

59:48 - Interconnection queues and solutions for clearing them

• Prof Jacob Mays hot take about Connect and Manage and how it relates to Resource Adequacy
• Prof Jesse Jenkins solutioning on #energytwitter

1:09:50 - Ahlmahz’s insightful question of the week

1:15:07 - Kathleen Stak’s Closing Thoughts

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

You can find our merch on shopify. You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Share with friends that are electric utility enthusiasts, like us!

With quotes from the hit comedy “Shrinking”, Paul navigates the vibes after a Regional Expansion Summit hosted by Seattle City Light, Portland General Electric, and the Bonneville Power Administration

Jan Smutny-Jones, Mary Wiencke, Jim Shetler, and Chris Robinson join Paul Dockery to debrief and synthesize the participants shared understanding after a California/Northwest Regional Expansion Summit hosted by Seattle City Light, Portland General Electric, and the Bonneville Power Administration on March 10th, 2023.

In true Public Power Underground fashion the topics were introduced with quotes from the first two episodes of the new Apple TV comedy Shrinking starring Jason Segel, Jessica Williams, and Harrison Ford who all play psychologists. The timestamps for the quotes are included in the show notes, just in case you want to get some laughs before diving into the discussion.

05:03 - History of Market Development in the West

“Classic compassion fatigue, we ask questions, listen, stay non-judgmental and you don’t make that face” - Dr. Paul Rhoades played by Harrison Ford (Episode 1, 10:13)

19:12 - Benefits, Opportunities and Barriers

“Look, I don't have people in my home, it’s not that I’m antisocial. I know that you do this [referring to Jimmy and Gaby asking probing questions] to shame me because I'm a somewhat private person, but it just strengthens my resolve. I’m pro boundaries, my family is for me, my home is my fortress of solitude” - Dr. Paul Rhoades played by Harrison Ford (Episode 2, 7:54)

48:12 - Decarbonization pathways and the role of Regional Markets

“I know someone does [i.e., who “gets it”], he’s tall and he calls me too much.” - Dr. Paul Rhoades played by Harrison Ford (Episode 2, 17:16)

1:03:55 - A shared understanding of the mutual benefits of ongoing collaboration

“Hey, anybody that helps us raise our kids with love and respect, we should be grateful” - Dr. Paul Rhoades played by Harrison Ford (Episode 2, 12:43)

You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember to share this with any friends you have that are electric utility enthusiasts like us!

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

Jackie Flowers, PE, Humaira Falkenberg, Karen Heim, and Ahlmahz Negash, PhD discuss pathways to workforces that are representative of our communities in an all-female-cast episode of Public Power Underground.

05:07 - Introduction of Diverse Workforce of the Future article by Jackie Flowers, PE, in NWPPA’s Monthly Bulletin

24:14 - Lessons learned from Tacoma’s experience with the Math-Engineering-Science-Achievement (MESA) program that could apply to open positions at peer utilities today

• An insightful Venn Diagram of belonging1
• The Waymaker by Tara Jaye Frank

46:15 - Sharing wisdom in mentorship and sponsoring

57:38 - Ahlmahz’s Insightful Question of the Week

1:17:03 - Short to Ground

• Billi Kohler, the General Manager of West Oregon Electric Cooperative, is featured in a national rural electric magazine story about workforce changes
• Lane Electric’s 7-member board of directors now includes 6 women working with Debi Wilson, the first female general manager in the co-op’s 83-year history

1:19:40 - Humaira Falkenberg’s Closing Thoughts

You can find our merch on shopify. You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember to share this with any friends you have that are electric utility enthusiasts like us!

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, it’s work to watch!

LIVE! from the main stage at The Energy Authority's 2023 Energy Symposium, Paul and Laura moderate a panel on market disruptors with energy executives and leaders

Paul Dockery and Laura Trolese moderate a panel on disruptors to resource adequacy, day-ahead, and real-time markets at The Energy Authority’s 2023 Energy Symposium with Melie Vincent, Richard Dillon, and Jamie Mahne. After a serious discussion of disruptors, they tackle less serious energy analogies in a game called “Disruptors or Duds”.

07:34 - Large weather patterns changing evaluation of resource adequacy

21:40 - Accounting for new uncertainty in day-ahead markets

32:32 - Volatility of natural gas and real-time markets

46:38 - Disruptors or Duds: a niche pop culture or sports reference as an analogue to an energy industry topic

You can find our merch on shopify. You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember to share this with any friends you have that are electric utility enthusiasts like us!

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, where you’re valued and appreciated.

Sarah Edmonds, Crystal Ball, Ahlmahz Negash, PhD, and Paul Dockery discuss a how resource adequacy design theory applies to resource adequacy program design, why FERC asked questions about market based rate authority, what it means for a program to be interoperable, and where inter-regional transmission is coming from. 

06:08 - Reminder for friends and fans of Therese Hampton to RSVP for her Celebration of Life and information about the Therese Hampton Endowed Scholarship for Economics and Business1at Portland State University.

09:53 - translating theory into a program, debriefing from the interview with Prof. Jacob Mays

23:55 - Market Based Rate Authority and the status at FERC

• FERC Wants More Western Resource Adequacy Program Information
• Western Power Pool’s response to FERC’s deficiency letter

35:45 - Interoperability of a resource adequacy program with multiple markets

• Western US regional grid, reliability efforts reach crossroads in 2023

47:57 - Interregional transmission and the West

• FERC Staff-Led Workshop on Establishing Interregional Transfer Capability Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation Requirements
• FERC urged to set interregional transfer capacity requirements to boost reliability, lower costs
• Inter-regional planning and transmission could help keep the lights on during extreme weather

1:05:55 - Short to Ground; where we TL;DR our way through the rest of the news

• BLM Proposes Solar Plan Expansion to Include 11 Western States
• Harris Attends Ten West Line Groundbreaking
• NRC Certifies First U.S. Small Modular Reactor Design
• Federal Government Says 'Not So Fast' on Diablo Canyon Extension
• Billions in federal dollars could make the Pacific Northwest a hub for renewable hydrogen
• Day-Ahead Market Enhancements decision to be deferred
• Spot Market Power
• La Nina
• NOAA Climate Forecasts
• WY2023 Water Supply Forecast

You can find our merch on shopify. You can find the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Remember to share this with any friends you have that are electric utility enthusiasts like us!

Public Power Underground, for electric utility enthusiasts! Public Power Underground, where you’re valued and appreciated.

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1 At the hyperlink go to “Search All Funds” and either find or search for the Therese Hampton Endowed Scholarship for Economics and Business. Image below.