H. Lee Willis

Power interruptions of the scale of the North American Blackout of 2003 are rare, but they still loom as a possibility. Will the aging infrastructure fail because deregulated monopolies have no financial incentives to upgrade? Is centralized planning becoming subordinate to market forces? Understanding Electric Utilities and De-Regulation, Second Edition provides an updated, non-technical description that sheds light on the nature of the industry and the issues involved in its transition away from a regulated environment. The book begins by broadly surveying the industry, from a regulated utility structure to the major concepts of de-regulation to the history of electricity, the technical aspects, and the business of power. Then, the authors delve into the technologies and functions on which the industry operates; the many ways that power is used; and the various means of power generation, including central generating stations, renewable energy, and single-household size generators. The authors then devote considerable attention to the details of regulation and de-regulation. To conclude, one new chapter examines aging infrastructures and reliability of service, while another explores the causes of blackouts and how they can be prevented. Based on the authors' extensive experience, Understanding Electric Utilities and De-Regulation, Second Edition offers an up-to-date perspective on the major issues impacting the daily operations as well as the long-term future of the electric utilities industry.

Good aging infrastructure management consists of optimizing the choice of equipment and its refurbishment while also making compatible changes in all those operating and ownership policies, the whole combination aimed at optimizing the business results the power system owner desires. Both a reference and tutorial guide, this second edition of Aging Power Delivery Infrastructures provides updated coverage of aging power delivery systems, the problems they cause, and the technical and managerial approaches that power systems owners can take to manage them. See What’s New in the Second Edition: All chapters have been updated or are completely newComprehensive discussions of all issues related to equipment agingBusiness impact analysis and models and engineering business studies of actual utility casesStrategy and policy issues and how to frame and customize them for specific situationsThis book looks at the basics of equipment aging and its system and business impacts on utilities. It covers various maintenance, service and retrofit methods available to mitigate age-related deterioration of equipment. It also presents numerous configuration and automation upgrades at the system level that can deal with higher portions of aging equipment in the system and still provide good service at a reasonable cost.

Good aging infrastructure management consists of optimizing the choice of equipment and its refurbishment while also making compatible changes in all those operating and ownership policies, the whole combination aimed at optimizing the business results the power system owner desires. Both a reference and tutorial guide, this second edition of Aging Power Delivery Infrastructures provides updated coverage of aging power delivery systems, the problems they cause, and the technical and managerial approaches that power systems owners can take to manage them. See What’s New in the Second Edition: All chapters have been updated or are completely newComprehensive discussions of all issues related to equipment agingBusiness impact analysis and models and engineering business studies of actual utility casesStrategy and policy issues and how to frame and customize them for specific situationsThis book looks at the basics of equipment aging and its system and business impacts on utilities. It covers various maintenance, service and retrofit methods available to mitigate age-related deterioration of equipment. It also presents numerous configuration and automation upgrades at the system level that can deal with higher portions of aging equipment in the system and still provide good service at a reasonable cost.

Power interruptions of the scale of the North American Blackout of 2003 are rare, but they still loom as a possibility. Will the aging infrastructure fail because deregulated monopolies have no financial incentives to upgrade? Is centralized planning becoming subordinate to market forces? Understanding Electric Utilities and De-Regulation, Second Edition provides an updated, non-technical description that sheds light on the nature of the industry and the issues involved in its transition away from a regulated environment. The book begins by broadly surveying the industry, from a regulated utility structure to the major concepts of de-regulation to the history of electricity, the technical aspects, and the business of power. Then, the authors delve into the technologies and functions on which the industry operates; the many ways that power is used; and the various means of power generation, including central generating stations, renewable energy, and single-household size generators. The authors then devote considerable attention to the details of regulation and de-regulation. To conclude, one new chapter examines aging infrastructures and reliability of service, while another explores the causes of blackouts and how they can be prevented. Based on the authors' extensive experience, Understanding Electric Utilities and De-Regulation, Second Edition offers an up-to-date perspective on the major issues impacting the daily operations as well as the long-term future of the electric utilities industry.

Providing more than twice the content of the original edition, this new edition is the premier source on the selection, development, and provision of safe, high-quality, and cost-effective electric utility distribution systems, and it promises vast improvements in system reliability and layout by spanning every aspect of system planning including load forecasting, scheduling, performance, and economics. Responding to the evolving needs of electric utilities, Power Distribution Planning Reference Book presents an abundance of real-world examples, procedural and managerial issues, and engineering and analytical methodologies that are crucial to efficient and enhanced system performance.

Containing 12 new chapters, this second edition offers increased coverage of weather correction and normalization of forecasts, anticipation of redevelopment, determining the validity of announced developments, and minimizing risk from over- or under-planning. It provides specific examples and detailed explanations of key points to consider for both standard and unusual utility forecasting situations, information on new algorithms and concepts in forecasting, a review of forecasting pitfalls and mistakes, case studies depicting challenging forecast environments, and load models illustrating various types of demand.